
Class 



Book. 



tJdEjO&L 



GopyrightN°_ 



COPYRIGI1T DEPOStT. 



HANDBOOK FOE 
BUSINESS LETTER WRITERS 



BY 

LOUISE E. BONNEY, Pd.B., B.S. 

AND 

CAROLYN PERCY COLE, M.A. 

INSTRUCTORS EN ENGLISH 
WASHINGTON IRVING HIGH SCHOOL, NEW YORK 




NEW YORK 
HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY 






COPYRIGHT, 1922, BY 
HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY, INC. 



PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. 



APR 2IJ)22 



A659693 
•vto / 



INTRODUCTION 

What good eyeglasses are to the eyes, good English is 
to the mind. As good eyeglasses enable the eyes really to 
see the printed page that lies before them, so good English 
enables the mind to understand easily and clearly the 
thought that page is intended to express. 

Success in a competitive business is the outcome not 
only of ambition and hard work but of full and painstaking 
preparation. One should learn the meaning of words. One 
should develop the ability to write English that will exact- 
ly express his thoughts. Many a good business plan has 
failed of adoption because of misunderstandings that arose 
from the awkward and obscure language in which it was 
written. I have learned this through bitter experience. 

It is worth while to give oneself a real chance to succeed 
by getting a thorough preparation for business. Without 
this preparation, one's letters and business plans are 
likely to confuse even those who understood the subject 
in the beginning. With this preparation, one can bring the 
entire power of his mind to bear in presenting his ideas to 
his business associates. This book will teach young people 
to handle intelligently those essential tools of business, 
words and sentences. Therefore, I am interested in it and 
recommend it. 

Edward A. Filene 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Why Bother? a Foreword 1 

Form of the Letter: 

Appearance of the Letter 2 

Correct Forms for Headings, Introductions and 

Conclusions 3 

Titles 7 

Correct Salutations 10 

Conclusions 11 

Additional Forms 14 

The Letter Itself: 

The Sentence 15 

The Paragraph 19 

Diction: 

Common Errors 23 

Business Phrases 29 

Grammar: 

Verbs 31 

Pronouns 33 

Prepositions and Conjunctions 37 

Adverbs and Adjectives 38 

Punctuation: 

The Period 40 

The Capital 40 

The Comma 42 

The Semicolon 43 

The Colon 44 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

The Hyphen 45 

The Apostrophe 46 

Quotation Marks 47 

Numbers 50 

Abbreviations 51 

Spelling 54 

Syllabication 55 

Types of Letters: 

The Letter of Inquiry 57 

Answer to Inquiry or Request 58 

Order Letter 60 

Acknowledgment of Order 64 

Notice of Shipment 67 

Letter of Claim 68 

Letter of Adjustment 72 

Collection Letters 75 

The Letter of Application 81 

Sales Letters 84 

Letters — Incorrect and Correct 88 

Telegrams 87 

Bibliography 90 

Index 93 



HANDBOOK FOR 
BUSINESS LETTER WRITERS 

WHY BOTHER? 

"Why bother over all those tiny details? Why be so 
fussy?" 

Well, why? 

Why not use an inch margin all the time? Why bother 
with a two-inch one? Why try to keep the right-hand 
margin even? Why " block" a letter consistently? Why 
write out words that might be abbreviated? Why list 
items? Why trouble to look up the spelling or the mean- 
ing of a word in the dictionary, when your reader will 
probably guess what you mean, anyway? Why bother? 

It is worth while "bothering" to make a friend, isn't 
it? That is what letters do, make friends or enemies; or 
what is worse, they result in deadly indifference. 

The letter that makes a friend is attractive in appearance, 
clean, framed in a white margin, consistently planned. It 
is simple and clear in its meaning, just as the speech of a 
friend is simple and easy to understand, with no hidden 
thoughts, no statements with double meanings, no formal 
phrases that repel. Such a letter is as friendly as its 
author, genuinely desiring to help the one who receives it. 
So the "I" is left out of its vocabulary, just as it is out of 
that of the popular girl. "You" is the one of whom the 
writer thinks. 

This letter gives pleasure to the man who dictates its 
clear-cut, friendly words; to the girl who transcribes it 
correctly and intelligently, typing it with the care that an 
artist uses; and to the person who enjoys reading it from 
the "Dear Sir" to the "Very truly yours." 

1 



FORM OF THE LETTER 

APPEARANCE OF THE LETTER 

Paper. Practically all business letters are written on 
commercial size paper, 8| x 11 inches. The best houses 
use a good quality of white bond paper. In correspondence 
within an organization colored papers are sometimes used 
to represent different departments. 

Arrangement on the Paper. The arrangement of the let- 
ter on the paper is most important. The stenographer 
should always plan the " layout" of her letter as carefully 
as an advertising man does his copy, with the idea of creat- 
ing a good first impression. Her letters should be " well- 
framed' ' in white space, with a one-inch margin for long 
letters, a two-inch or wider margin, for short letters. Her 
right-hand margin should be almost as clearly-cut as her 
left. 

Ordinarily the letter should be single spaced, with double 
spacing between date and salutation, between salutation and 
body, between the paragraphs themselves, and between the 
body and conclusion. In very short letters, double spacing 
may be used throughout. Paragraphs may be indented or 
blocked, as the stenographer's taste or as the policy of the 
house dictates. It is correct to indent paragraphs even if 
the block form is used elsewhere. 

The conclusion should be centered. 

One page letters are preferred to longer ones, unless the 
letter is from a close associate and written on a subject in 
which the recipient has a keen interest. Usually all pages 
after the first one are written on sheets with no letterhead. 

2 



FORM OF LETTER 3 

CORRECT FORMS FOR HEADINGS, INTRODUCTIONS 
AND CONCLUSIONS 

Stationery with No Letterhead. In the best houses two 
types of arrangement are used, block and indentation; and 
two of punctuation, open and closed. Usually the block 
arrangement is used in combination with open punctuation; 
the indentation, with closed. 

The more conservative business houses and professional 
offices still employ the indentation form, but the majority 
of them today use the block form. 

Examples: 

Block — Open 

140 North Jefferson Street 
Cleveland, Ohio 
February 18, 1922 

Messrs. Brown & Robie 
140 East Market Street 
Portland, Oregon 

Gentlemen: 



Very truly yours 
Indentation — Closed 



140 North Jefferson Street, 
Cleveland, Ohio, 
February 18, 1922. 



Messrs. Brown & Robie, 
140 East Market Street, 
Portland, Oregon. 

Gentlemen: 



Very truly yours, 



4 FORM OF LETTER 

Stationery with Letterhead. The date should be placed 
midway between the introduction and the letterhead, and 
to the right far enough to reach the margin. Stationery 
which provides a dotted line for the date, following the 
name of the place, 

New York, N. Y 

is rapidly going out of use. 
Examples : 



December 27, 1921 



Messrs. Brown and Robbins 
48 West Broadway 
New York, N.Y. 

Gentlemen: 



Very truly yours 

There are several other forms of arranging the date. The 
following have met with most approval: 

October May First 11 October, 1921 

Fifteenth 19 2 1 

Nineteen 

Twenty-one 



Special Forms. Lawyers, doctors, architects and execu- 
tives, in correspondence with their clients or business 



FORM OF LETTER 5 

associates of long standing often employ the following 
form: 



My dear Mr. Maxon, 



Yours very sincerely, 



Mr. James Maxon, 

21 South Bridge Street, 
Buffalo, New York. 



An official letter is one written to a prominent person on 
a matter of general or public, rather than business, interest. 
The following form is used: 

431 West 12 Street 
Chicago, Illinois 
December 21, 1921 

Sir: 



Respectfully yours 



Honorable William Robinson 
The Senate 
Washington, D.C. 



6 FORM OF LETTER 

Cautions. 1. Do not abbreviate anything except the 
state; the titles Mr., Mrs., Messrs., Mmes., and Dr.; and 
any part of a firm name, if the company makes the abbre- 
viation itself. An organization should always be addressed 
by its exact name. 

2. In cases where a form may or may not be abbreviated, 
as in the names of states, use the form that produces the 
best appearance. 

3. Do not use a two-line heading with New York on the 
line with the date. 

4. Do not separate the address by the date. 

Wrong Right 

70 Fifth Avenue 70 Fifth Avenue 

October 11, 1921 New York, N. Y. 

New York, N. Y. October 11, 1921 

5. Do not use rd, st, nd, th, in connection with dates 
and streets. 

6. Do not use figures alone to designate the date, as 
10/11/21. This is permissible only for office memoranda. 

7. Do not address any individual or firm without some 
prefix, as Mr., Messrs., and Mmes. In addressing a stock 
company, The takes the place of these forms of personal 
address. In the case of large, well known companies, when 
the individual names have lost their significance, Messrs. is 
often omitted. 

Lord & Taylor 
Gimbel Brothers 

8. In the use of the block or the indentation, the open 
or the closed forms, the important thing is to follow one 
method consistently throughout the letter. 

9. Numbers of streets under ten should be written in 
words; above that, usually in numerals 

810 Tenth Avenue 



FORM OF LETTER 7 

It is unsafe to place two numbers referring to different 
things together. 

Wrong Right 

70 5th Avenue 70 Fifth Avenue 

10. The correct form for New York, is New York, 
N. Y.j Salt Lake City, Kansas City, are correct, as "city" 
is a part of the name. In New York, it is not. 

TITLES 

Ordinary Forms of Address. Miss is the title of an 
unmarried woman. It is not an abbreviation and is not 
followed by a period. The plural of Miss is Misses. 

Miss Jane Blake 
The Misses Blake 

Mrs. is an abbreviation and the title of a married woman. 

Mrs. Charles Hodges 

If her husband is dead, her title remains the same; but 
if she is divorced and retains her husband's last name, she 
uses her own given name with the title of Mrs. 

Mrs. Annie Pierce Hodges 

Mmes., the abbreviation of Mesdames, is the form used 
when addressing a firm composed of women. 
Mmes. Talbot and Cheney 

Mr., an abbreviation, is used when addressing a man; 
Esquire, or Esq., is also frequently used in addressing 
lawyers or men of social distinction. Mr. precedes the 
name; Esquire follows it. They should never be used 
together. 

Wrong Right 

Mr. James Wade Devine, Esq. James Wade Devine, Esq. 

Mr. James Wade Devine 



8 FORM OF LETTER 

Messrs., the abbreviation of Messieurs, is used when 
addressing a firm, composed of men, or men and women, 
when the names constituting it represent individuals. 

Messrs. Jones and Brown 
James McCreery & Company 

The name of a corporation is usually impersonal and 
preceded by The. 

The Edison Company 
Examples : 

1. To an individual 

Mr. George A. Alexander 
1421 Columbus Street 
San Francisco, California 

2. To a firm (men) 

Messrs. Crane, Brown and Lenox 
49 West Jefferson Street 
Omaha, Nebraska 

3. To a firm (women) 

Mmes. Jane and Alice Grey 
45 East 46 Street 
New York, N. Y. 

4. To a stock company 

The National Chemical Company 
424 Maiden Lane 
Albany, N. Y. 

Titles of Honor or Position. Doctor is the title of one 
holding a doctor's degree in medicine, law, theology, lit- 
erature or philosophy. If the last name only is used, the 
word doctor is written out; otherwise, it may be abbreviated. 

Dr. Clayton E. Shaw 
Doctor Shaw 



FORM OF LETTER 9 

M.D., D.D., LL.D., D. Sc, and other abbreviations 
which denote the title doctor and which follow the name, 
are not used with Dr. 

Clayton E. Shaw, M.D. 

The title, Professor, is applied to those holding the posi- 
tion of professor or of associate professor. It should not 
be abbreviated. 

Professor Lewis 

Reverend is the title of a clergyman. It is sometimes 
preceded by The. It should never be abbreviated. The 
form The Reverend Mr. is also used. 

Reverend James Burchard 

The Reverend James Burchard 

The Reverend Mr. Burchard 

When The Reverend Mr. is used, the first name is not 
employed. 

Honorable is the title used in addressing men who hold 
important governmental positions, such as: 
Members of Congress 
Cabinet Officers 
Ambassadors 
Governors 

Lieutenant Governors 
Mayors 

Prominent citizens — who are often men who have held 
one of these positions. 

The following special forms are listed: 
The President 

His Excellency the Governor 
The Honorable Elihu Root 
His Honor the Mayor 

The Most Reverend Archbishop Patrick J. Hayes 
The Right Reverend James Stewart, Bishop of Nevada. 
Dean Pendleton 
Father O'Connor 



10 FORM OF LETTER 

Titles designating official capacity should be spelled in 
full. 

President 

Superintendent 

Secretary 

These titles usually follow the name on the first line; 
occasionally they are put on the second line before the name 
of the company or institution. 

Mr. John A. Wells, President 
The National City Bank 
Philadelphia, Pa. 

or 
Mr. Archibald Hemmingway 
President, Holton University 
Marsalia, Illinois 



CORRECT SALUTATIONS 

Ordinary Business Forms. 

For Mr. 

Dear Sir: 
For Mrs. or Miss 

Dear Madam: or Madam: 
For Mmes. 

Ladies: 
For Messrs. 

Gentlemen: 

Dear Sirs is seldom used in commercial correspondence. 
Gentlemen is the preferred form. However, in addressing 
a firm, as distinguished from a company or corporation, 
Dear Sirs is still used by the legal profession. 

Business Letters of a More Informal Nature. 

My dear Mrs. 1 
or Miss | Robinson: 

or Mr. J 



FORM OF LETTER 11 

Special Forms. 

Editor Sir: 

Mayor Dear Mr. Mayor: 

Governor Sir: 

Senator Dear Senator or Sir: 

President Sir: 

CONCLUSIONS 

Position. The conclusion should be centered. 
Complimentary Close. The close of the letter must be 
consistent with the state of the writer's relations with the 
addressee, and with the contents of the letter. 
Conventional business forms: 
Yours truly 
Yours very truly 
Very truly yours 

Forms used in addressing superiors, only: 
Respectfully yours 
Very respectfully yours 

Other forms to be used as the relations of the writer and 
the addressee warrant: 

Cordially yours 
Sincerely yours 
Faithfully yours 

Always avoid the weak "participial conclusion". The 
last paragraph of a business letter should be as clear-cut 
and vigorous as the first. 

Participial Conclusion Simple Statements 

Assuring you of our co-operation We assure you of our co-opera- 

in the matter, tion in the matter. 

Hoping that we shall hear favor- We hope that your reply will be 

ably from you, favorable. 

Trusting that this report will We trust that this report will 

satisfy you, satisfy you. 

Never use / remain. 



12 FORM OF LETTER 

Signature. Character. A written signature is always more 
effective than a stamped or printed one, even on form 
letters. If the name of the Company is printed or typed on 
form letters, it is well to have the writer's name follow in 
ink. The personal touch that this written signature gives 
a letter is usually worth the effort. 

Significance. The signature should always represent 
the person responsible for the letter. If the signature is 
the name of the company, the company is responsible for 
any statement in the letter. If the signature is that of an 
individual, official or otherwise, he is responsible. 

THE NATIONAL CHEMICAL COMPANY 

Company Responsibility %^^XO. +^jc 

*J Secretary 

Personal Responsibility <W— <* H*>*r 

1 (J THE NATIONAL CHEMICAL CO. 

Position. The signature is written on the line following 
the complimentary conclusion. If the letter is blocked, 
it is well to block the conclusion; otherwise, it is better 
to indent. Care should be taken to allow enough space so 
that the name of the company will not reach beyond 
the right margin. From two to four spaces should be 
left between the "Very truly yours/' and the title of the 
person dictating the letter to allow room for the signature. 

Very truly your». 

President, 

THE RATIONAL EXPRESS COMPASY 

Another form often used is the name of the firm followed 
by the name of the dictator. The signature may be pre- 
ceded by by, pro, or per. 

Very truly youre, 

THE NATIONAL EXPRESS COMPANY 

By/V^t^T^- (&C%<A. — 



FORM OF LETTER 13 

Sometimes the line under the signature has the title of 
the dictator. 

Very truly yours, 

THE SATIOKAL EXPRESS C0MPAITY 



A/ayhi^in^t (3jb 



The custom of typing the name placed under the signature 
is becoming more prevalent. An unfamiliar signature is 
often difficult to read. 

Very truly yours, 

Hanfoitt Pierce 

President 

THE HATIOHU EXPRESS COHPABY 

The Stenographer's Responsibility. As the writer of the 
letter shows his responsibility for the contents by his 
signature, so the stenographer shows hers for the form, 
appearance and accuracy by her initials. These should 
be placed in the left hand corner, preceded by those of the 
dictator, from which they are separated by a colon or line, 



JWH:AT 

Correct Signatures. A man should use as a business 
signature his first name and his surname; two initials and 
his surname; or his first name, his middle initial and his 
surname. Titles, as Dr., should not be included, nor should 
his name be followed by abbreviations indicating degree. 

His signature should be uniform. It should never consist 
of one initial plus his surname. 

Wrong Right 

A. Thomas Aaron P. Thomas 

A. P. Thomas 
Aaron Thomas 



14 



FORM OF LETTER 



If a man is writing in his official capacity, his title should 
follow his name 



Clmim/^PTha 



■fma&i President 



or precede the name of the company on the line below. 

Women's signatures should be simple, but should clearly 
define their position. The following are correct forms: 



1. Unmarried woman 

2. Married woman 






3. Widow 



(same as 2) 



ADDITIONAL FORMS 

Enclosures (2) [ ^ re P^ ace( ^ below the signature at the left 
Catalogue J °f the paper to indicate enclosures. 

f Referring to Order 365. It is usually placed 
Re Order 365 I at the upper right on the same line as the 

I salutation. 

Attention Mr. Brown { at , U PP er Hght ' ° n Same Une aS the 
I salutation. 

A two page letter is clipped together to insure against 
its loss. The second page has in the upper left cor- 
ner the name and address of the recipient of the 
Keying | letter. 

A number is often placed in the upper left corner to 
aid in filing or to ascertain results from an adver- 
l tiding campaign. 



THE LETTER ITSELF 

Modern business demands simple, well-planned effective 
letters. A knowledge of the fundamental principles of com- 
position in the sentence and paragraph, aids in producing 
clear, forceful communications. 

THE SENTENCE 

SENTENCE LENGTH 

Avoid extremes in sentences. 

Very short sentences are apt to be curt, and incomplete 
in thought; very long sentences are apt to be involved in 
structure and difficult to understand. 

An office manager who has studied this question says, 
"Three seconds is the normal unit of concentration. There- 
fore no sentence should be so long, that one cannot read it 
in three seconds." This limits the business sentence to 
about twenty-five words, with a minimum of five or six. 

POSITION 

The important positions in any business letter are the 
beginning and the end. The beginning should attract 
attention; the end should clinch the point. Short sentences 
are better in these positions, as they attract attention and 
crystallize ideas. Following the same principle, important 
words should be placed at the beginning or at the end of a 
sentence. In certain types of letters, the first sentences are 
very important in establishing the tone. This is especially 
true of adjustment, collection and sales letters. 
15 



16 THE LETTER ITSELF 

CONNECTIVES 

Avoid the monotony and the indefiniteness of the "and" 
sentences. Wherever possible, substitute a connective that 
will show a more definite relation between ideas. 

List of Connectives 

Time. When, before, after, since, while, until, till, as 
soon as, as long as, as, whenever. 

Poor Good 

We sent your goods on Oc- When we sent your goods on 

tober 10, and they were in October 10, they were in 

good condition. good condition. 

Place. Where, wherever, whence, whither. 

Poor Good 

I shall select a place to meet I shall select a place to meet 

you, and we can discuss the you where we can discuss the 

matter. matter. 

Manner. As, as if, as though. 

Good 
He will handle the situation as 
if you were with him. 

Comparison. Than, as, whereas. 

Poor Good 

Mr. Hodges is a good salesman Mr. Bassett is a better sales- 

and Mr. Bassett is a better man than Mr. Hodges, 
salesman. 

Cause. Because, since, for, as. 

Poor Good 

We shall be very happy to see We shall be very happy to see 

your representative and we your representative as we 

wish to talk to him about your wish to talk to him about your 

new line of goods. new line of goods. 



THE LETTER ITSELF 17 

Condition. If, unless, on condition that, provided. 

Good 
We shall increase your commis- 
sions if business warrants the 
added expense. 

Purpose. That, so that, in order that, lest. 
Poor Good 

We wish you to take the trip We wish you to take the trip 
and get in closer touch with so that you will get in closer 
our customers. touch with our customers. 

Result. That, so that. 

Poor Good 
He handled the proposition en- He handled the proposition so 
thusiastically and the sales enthusiastically that the sales 
increased throughout the ter- increased throughout the ter- 
ritory, ritory. 

Concession. Though, although, even if. 

Good 
Although the material of which 
these dresses are made is sat- 
isfactory, the cut is not dis- 
tinctive. 

Relative Pronoun. Who, which, that. 

Poor. Good. 

You might take the matter up You might take the matter up 

with Mr. Smith and he will with Mr. Smith who will give 

give you estimates. you estimates. 

Another danger of the "and" connection is, that the parts 
connected are not always co-ordinate. Since and is a co- 
ordinating conjunction, it must connect elements of equal 
rank, i.e., a clause with a clause; a phrase with a phrase. 

Wrong Right 

He decided to press the claim, He decided that he would press 

and that he would take legal the claim, and take legal action 

action if necessary. if necessary. 



18 



THE LETTER ITSELF 



In the first case, and connects an infinitive 
and a clause, "that he would take." 



to press" 



COMMON SENTENCE ERRORS 

The young stenographer is apt to make three or four 
"type mistakes" in construction. She should constantly 
watch for the following errors: 



1. The Comma Error. 

Wrong 
We are considering your prop- 
osition, it sounds very reason- 
able to us, although it is un- 
usual. 



Right 
1. We are considering your prop- 
osition. 2. It sounds very rea- 
sonable to us, although it is 
unusual. 



In this case, two independent clauses (1 and 2) are sepa- 
rated by a comma, making one sentence. The first clause 
forms a complete sentence, and is therefore followed by a 
period. 



2. The Divided Sentence. 

Wrong 
Our representative, Mr. Brown, 
will call on you during the 
week of December 20, to dis- 
cuss this question further. 
Although we feel that you will 
understand our position after 
reading this letter. 



Right 
Our representative, Mr. Brown, 
will call on you during the 
week of December 20, to dis- 
cuss this question further, al- 
though we feel that you will 
understand our position after 
reading this letter. 



In this case, the period separates the dependent clause, 
introduced by although, from the main clause. A study of 
the connectives listed before will help correct this error. 
These connectives introduce dependent clauses, which must 
be in the same sentence with the ideas they qualify. 



3. The "And" Sentence. (See page 16). 



THE LETTER ITSELF 19 

4. Change in Subject. 

Wrong Right 
We have investigated the mat- We have investigated the mat- 
ter, and you will be pleased ter and we feel sure that you 
with the result. will be pleased with the result. 

We, first person, and you, second person, are both subjects 
of co-ordinate clauses. They should be uniformly first or 
second person. 

5. Change of Voice. 

Wrong Right 

Your order was received this We received your order this 

morning, and we listed it as morning, and we listed it as 

Number 403. Number 403. 

Was received, passive voice, and listed, active voice are 
both predicates of the independent clauses. The verbs 
should be uniformly active or passive. The active voice 
is the better business form as it is more direct and forceful. 

THE PARAGRAPH 

PLAN 

To produce a letter which gets results, a plan is necessary. 
An outline of the points to be made constitutes this plan. 
Each one of these points represents a paragraph. 

Plans for routine letters are contained in this book under 
Types of Letters, page 55. 

LENGTH 

The modern business man presents his ideas simply and 
pointedly; therefore his paragraphs are short and clear. 
A good average in ordinary commercial correspondence is 
five or six sentences. The same principle holds good as with 
sentences, Avoid Extremes. 



20 THE LETTER ITSELF 

The one sentence paragraph is effective occasionally. It 
should be employed seldom, as it has become a cheaply 
spectacular device through overuse. 

EMPHASIS 

1. Through Position. The emphatic positions in para- 
graphs as in sentences, are the beginning and the end. 
Therefore, the opening paragraph is especially important. 
It is usually short and forceful. It should seem to make the 
interest of the reader 'primary, that of the writer, secondary. 
The elimination of we or J, and the substitution of you as 
the main idea, accomplish this purpose. 

Poor Good 

We feel that we have adjusted It is a great pleasure to help you 
the difficulty satisfactorily. avoid the difficulty with the 

window cleaner. 

The opening paragraph or the one immediately following 
it should introduce the subject, and refer to preceding 
correspondence. 

The final paragraph is equally important, as it is the 
writer's last chance to impress his reader. It is often longer 
than the first, crystallizes the ideas of the letter, and car- 
ries some spur to action on the part of the recipient. Occa- 
sionally a one-sentence paragraph is forceful, especially as 
an incentive to action in sales or collection letters. 

2. Through Contrast. A paragraph of contrasting or bal- 
anced ideas is an effective way of gaining emphasis. The 
connectives, but, on the other hand, on the contrary, etc. 
help in developing a paragraph of this sort. 

Occasionally the mechanical device of balancing state- 
ments in opposite columns is used, especially in claim or 
sales letters. 



THE LETTER ITSELF 21 

/ Ordered I Received 

4 yds. white dimity @ $.75 4 yds. white dimity @ $.75 

2 prs. silk stockings, 2 prs. silk stockings, 

black, size 8 @ $4.00 *e, size 8 @ $4.00 

6 yds. black satin, 6 yds. black satin, 

36 inches wide @ $4.00 44 inches wide @ $4.00 

3. Through Repetition. Repetition needs careful treat- 
ment, since monotony rather than strength, often results. 
Forceful, intelligent repetition of words may strengthen a 
point. Repetition of the idea by synonym and pronoun is 
more easily handled by the amateur. (See Diction, page 23). 

4. Through Diction. The business vocabulary of today 
differs greatly from that of ten years ago. It consists of 
simple, pointed, conversational words, that drive ideas home 
pleasantly but forcefully. 

The varied business interests of the country have devel- 
oped special trade, shipping and industrial vocabularies, 
which are of great importance to the stenographer. She 
should familiarize herself with the vocabulary of the special 
business with which she is connected. (See Diction page 29) 

COHERENCE 

The young writer often fails to recognize the value of 
connectives, in carrying the thought along between sentence 
and sentence in the paragraph and between paragraph and 
paragraph in the letter. 

The following means of connection should be used 
frequently: 

1. Pronouns. The former, the latter, this, that, these, 
those. 

If these refer to some idea in a preceding sentence or 



22 



THE LETTER ITSELF 



paragraph they carry the thought from the first sentence 
or paragraph to the pronoun sentence. 

2. Adverbs and Phrases. 



again 


moreover 


in addition 


further 


also 


besides 


too 


first 


on the contrary 


on the other hand 


finally 


secondly 


thirdly 


of course 


at last 


in fact 


therefore 


on the whole 


however 






, Repetition of the idea by synonyms 


i. (See page 23) 



DICTION 

To repeat, from the introduction: 

"The business letter is simple and clear in its meaning, 
just as a friend's conversation is simple and easy to under- 
stand, with no hidden thoughts, no ambiguous meanings, 
no formal phrases that repel." 

I. To make a letter simple and easy to understand the 
writer must avoid: 

1. Purposeless repetition of words as 

Wrong Right 

We thank you for your order We thank you for your order 

No. 4620. We are shipping No. 4620. We are shipping 

part of the order by American part of the goods by American 

Express, on December 20, as Express on December 20, as 

you directed. The rest of you directed; the rest of 

your order will be sent on them, on January 1. 
January 1. 

The two most successful ways of avoiding repetition are 
used in the corrected sentence: a synonym, in goods; sl 
pronoun, in them. 

2. Incorrect word usage 

The stenographer's limitation of vocabulary is responsi- 
ble for many serious errors in business correspondence. 
Some of the stenographer's main faults are: 

Confusion of Homonyms, i.e., words that sound alike, 
but differ in meaning. 

23 



24 



DICTION 



further farther 

Further indicates extent of time, degree or quantity. 
Farther indicates distance. 

Wrong Right 

Until we have a conference with Until we have a conference with 

you we cannot discuss the you we cannot discuss the 

matter farther. matter further. 

respectfully respectively 

respectfully, literally, full of respect 
respectively, one by one 

Wrong Right 

Respectively yours Respectfully yours 

accept except 

accept, to receive 

except, to exclude (as a verb) 



Wrong 
We shall be glad to except your 

offer. 
We cannot accept even our oldest 

employees in the enforcement 

of this rule. 


Right 
We shall be glad to accept your 

offer. 
We cannot except even our oldest 

employees in the enforcement 

of this rule. 


affect 


effect 


affect, 

effect, (verb) 
effect, (noun) 


to change 
to bring about 
result 


Wrong 

We shall affect several changes in 

our organization, January 1. 


Right 

We shall effect several changes in 

our organization, January 1. 


This misunderstanding will not 
effect our relations. 


This misunderstanding will not 
affect our relations. 


loose 


lose 


loose, 


to untie 


lose, 


to part with 



DICTION 25 

Wrong Right 

We should be sorry to loose your We should be sorry to lose your 
patronage. patronage. 

advise (verb) advice (noun) 
Wrong Eight 

We shall act on your advise. We shall act on your advice. 

practise (verb) practice (noun) 
Wrong Right 

We do not make a practise of We do not make a practice of 
giving discount. giving discount. 

practicable, capable of being done 
practical, valuable in practice) useful 
Wrong Right 

He is a practicable man. He is a practical man. 

The plan is not a practical one. The plan is not a practicable one. 

This is only a partial list. The dictionary should settle 
all problems of this sort. 

Confusion of Prepositions: 

in into 

In denotes place where. 
Into denotes motion from one place to another. 
Wrong Right 

He placed the paper into the He placed the paper in the 

book. book. 

Will you please step in the Will you please step into the 
office? office? 

off from 

The preposition off is often incorrectly used with the verb 
buy. 

Wrong Right 

We bought it off Mr. Bushing. We bought it from Mr. Bushing. 



26 DICTION 

Note: There is a legitimate use of the expression buy off, mean- 
ing to bribe, to induce to abstain by some consideration. 

Example: Mr. Bates is thoroughly reliable. He could never be 
bought off by our competitors. 

by with 

Wrong Right 

She lives by her sister. She lives with her sister. 

between among 

Between is used when two are considered; among where 

more than two are concerned. 

Wrong Right 

The responsibility was divided The responsibility was divided 

between Mr. Wells, Mr. Grey among Mr. Wells, Mr. Grey 

and Mr. Smith. and Mr. Smith. 

to on 

The prepositions on and to are often used incorrectly with 
the verb ' 'blame". 

Wrong Right 

He blamed it on the President. He laid the blame on the Presi- 
He blamed it to the President. dent. 

of on 

Wrong Right 

A sale on hats will be held. A sale of hats will be held. 

would] i would 1 , 

\ of } nave 

should] should j 

Wrong Right 

I should of done it if I had known I should have done it if I had 
sooner. known sooner. 

different than different from 

Wrong Right 

This is different than that. This is different from that. 



DICTION 27 

differ from differ with 

Differ from expresses unlikeness. Differ from and differ 
with both are used to express divergence in opinion. 

Wrong Right 

Your desks differ with each other Your desks differ from each other 

in size. in size. 

compare to compare with 
Compare to expresses a likeness between the two objects. 
Compare with is used when a dispassionate examination of 
two things is made to show their characteristic qualities. 

Wrong Right 
When those two men are com- When those two men are com- 
pared to each other, one can pared with each other, one can 
easily see why one is more sue- easily see why one is more suc- 
cessful than the other cessful than the other. 

Use of Unnecessary Words 

refer back 
Back is unnecessary. Refer means to look back. 

co-operate together 

Together is unnecessary. Co-operate means to work 
together. 

return back 
Back is unnecessary. Return means to go back. 

Inaccurate use of words 

go come 

Go means to depart; come means to approach. 

Wrong Right 

Our representative, Mr. Clarke, Our representative, Mr. Clarke, 
came to your office yesterday. went to your office yesterday. 



28 



DICTION 



take bring 
Bring means to convey to the place where the speaker 
is or is to be. Take means to bear away. 

Wrong Right 

Bring the samples to Mr. Smith's Take the samples to Mr. Smith's 

office at 10 o'clock. office at 10 o'clock. 

Mr. Shaw will take the samples Mr. Shaw will bring the samples 
here at 10 o'clock. here at 10 o'clock. 

lie lay 

There are two verbs : lie, to prevaricate, which is a regular 
verb; and lie, to recline, which is irregular. 

He, lied, lying, lied lie, lay, lying, lain 

To lay is a regular transitive verb which means to place. 

lay, laid, laying, laid 

Wrong Right 

I lay the papers on your desk I laid the papers on your desk 

this morning. this morning. 

Let the books lay on the desk. Let the books lie on the desk. 

leave let 

Leave means to depart. Let means to allow. 
Wrong Right 

The manager will leave me go The manager will let me go this 
this forenoon. afternoon. 

less fewer 

Less refers to quantity. Fewer refers to number. 
Wrong Right 

There are less shipments coming There are fewer shipments com- 
in than formerly. ing in than formerly. 



Colloquialisms 

Poor 
We have received your letter 
and we shall look into the 
matter. 



Better 
We have received your letter 
and we shall investigate the 
matter. 



DICTION 



29 



Poor 
You can get me on the phone. 
I have most finished. 
I saw your ad in this morning's 
"Tribune." 



Better 
You can reach me by telephone. 
I have almost finished. 
I saw your advertisement in this 
morning's "Tribune." 



A study of business magazines and trade organs is sug- 
gested as a means of adding to the stenographer's vocabu- 
lary, general words and the specific words of the trade or 
business with which she is connected. 

The dictionary should be her constant guide. 

II. To avoid the "formal phrases that repel", the stenogra- 
pher should use only friendly, conversational words, not the 
stereotyped business phrases that belong to a past age and have 
lost all significance through constant, unintelligent use.. 



Stereotyped Form 
We wish to submit. 
We beg to acknowledge your let- 
ter, containing order 420 
We are enclosing herewith 
Enclosed please find 

We acknowledge the receipt of 
your letter and in reply would 
state that our representative 
will call on you. 

Kindly send these at your 
earliest convenience. 

In compliance with your request, 

we are sending you. 
Your letter of recent date received, 

asking us to . . . 
Your letter has been received 

and the contents duly noted. 
Our Mr. Jones will call on you. 



The Conversational Form 

We are submitting 

We thank you for your order 
number 420 

We are enclosing. . . 

We are enclosing ... or 

Enclosed you will find . . . 

We have received your let- 
ter .. . 

We shall be very glad to send 
our representative to see you. 

Kindly send these so that they 
will reach me by December 20 

Kindly send the following: 

We are glad to send you. 

You asked us in your letter of 
November 20, to . . . 



Our representative, Mr. Jones, 
will call on you. 



30 



DICTION 



Always omit unless they are used in their original meanings: 



above (not always clear) 
advise (only to be used when 

advice is given) 
as per (relic of legal terms) 
at hand (unnecessary) 
beg (servile) 



herewith (unnecessary) 

inst. (name of the month is 

clearer) 
oblige (over-used) 
recent date (indefinite) 
same (often not clear) 



favor (a letter is not a favor) valued (over-used) 

Good commercial English never sacrifices courtesy to 
brevity by using abbreviations, or by omitting articles, pro- 
nouns, verbs, or other words, necessary to grammatical com- 
pleteness or rhetorical effect. 



GRAMMAR 

VERBS 
I. Tenses 

When a date in the past times a transaction, the Past 
and the Past Perfect Tense should be used. 

Wrong Right 

On December 29, we have sent On December 29, we sent you 

you an order for 500 Women's an order for 500 Women's 

Skirts, No. X-417, assorted Skirts, No. X-417, assorted 

sizes and colors. sizes and colors. 

When the writer is dating his remarks from the time 
the letter is sent, the Present and the Present Perfect Tenses 
should be used. 

Wrong Right 

We investigated your claim of We have investigated your claim 
January 5. of January 5. 

Shall and Will. Mistakes in the use of shall and will are 
taken as indications of slovenly grammatical habits. 

The conjugation of the future tense is: 

I shall send We shall send 

You will send You will send 

He (she, it) will send They will send 

Unless one wishes to be emphatic to an extent rarely 
necessary in polite society, the best plan is to use one of the 
forms above. 

31 



32 GRAMMAR 

Wrong Right 

We will be in the office every We shall be in the office every 

morning at ten and will be de- morning at ten and shall be 

lighted to see you. delighted to see you. 

Extreme determination or a definite promise is shown by 
the following: 

I will send We will send 

You shall send You shall send 

He (she) shall send They shall send 

The occasions when one of these forms can be used occur 
very seldom. 

A question in the first person is always, 
" Shall I?" 

The general rule is that a question is always asked in 
the form in which the expected reply should be couched. 

Should and would stand for shall and will respectively. 
The same rules govern their usage. 

Wrong Right 

We would be pleased to see your We should be pleased to see your 

samples at any time. samples at any time. 

Would is one of the most frequently misused words in 
the business vocabulary. Usually it is unnecessary. 

Wrong Right 

We would suggest that you send We suggest that you send 

back, etc. back, etc. 

II. Split Infinitives 

Although in English the sign of the infinitive "to" is 
written as a separate word, it is as firmly attached to the 
root as is the ending indicating the infinitive of any foreign 
language. It should never be separated from its root. 
Such a separation is called "splitting the infinitive." 



GRAMMAR 33 

Wrong Right 

We therefore ask you to kindly We therefore ask you to in- 

investigate. vestigate. 

We have decided to quickly We have decided to examine all 
examine all applicants. applicants quickly. 

III. Participles 

Since the tendency in modern business correspondence is 
toward direct statement instead of the participial form, the 
participle should usually be avoided. Another reason for 
eliminating it is that the young stenographer often makes 
two or three common mistakes in its use. One of these 
is the use of the participle to modify the wrong word. 

Wrong Right 

Having considered the matter Having considered the matter 
thoroughly, the decision is thoroughly, we have reached 
favorable. a favorable decision. 

In the first sentence, having considered modifies decision. 
This conveys no idea. In the second sentence it modifies 
we, and the meaning is clear. 

Another error is the use of being that or seeing that to 
introduce a clause, when since or some other causal con- 
nective is demanded. 

Wrong Right 

Being that the goods were dam- Since the goods were damaged, 
aged, we shall be glad to send we shall be glad to send you 
you a duplicate of the order. a duplicate of the order. 

PRONOUNS 

I. Case Errors 

Nominative 

This case must always be used for the subject of a sen- 
tence. When the subject is compound, consisting of a noun 



34 GRAMMAR 

and a pronoun, the objective case of the pronoun is often 

incorrectly substituted for the nominative. 

Wrong Right 

Mr. Smith and me are planning Mr. Smith and / are planning to 
to leave for Chicago on Mon- leave for Chicago on Mon- 
day, day. 

The verb to be takes the same case after it as before. 
If the first case is nominative, the pronoun following must 
be in the nominative case. 

A common misuse of the objective case, in place of the 
nominative, occurs often in direct discourse. 

Wrong Eight 

"Whom are you?" said Cyril. "Who are you?" said Cyril. 

In this case the pronoun occurs after to be; therefore 
it takes the same case as its subject you. The mistake 
lies in considering you, instead of the entire clause, the 
direct object of said. 

Wrong Right 

(a) Whom does that appear to Who does that appear to be? 

be? 

(6) It seems to be her. It seems to be she. 

In (a) sentence the pronoun before to be, is that, the 
subject of appear. As subject, it is in the nominative 
case. Therefore who, following to be, takes the same case. 
In the same way in (b), she following to be goes back to 
it, the subject, for its case. 

All forms of the verb to be follow the same rule. 
Wrong Right 

Is this Miss Blank? Is this Miss Blank? 

Yes, this is her. Yes, this is she. 

Objective 

One of the most common errors in the use of the objective 
case is made by people who pride themselves on speaking 



GRAMMAR 35 

"elegantly". Taught to say "John and J", they continue 
to say it, disregarding the following rules: 

The object of a preposition is alwaj^s in the objective case. 
Wrong Right 

This carries with it the best This carries with it the best 
wishes of the season from Mr. wishes of the season from Mr. 
Stevens and I. Stevens and me. 

The direct object of a verb is in the objective case. 
Wrong Right 

Who do you mean? Whom do you mean? 

He consulted my partner and I. He consulted my partner and 

me. 

The subject of an infinitive is in the objective case. 
Wrong Right 

Who do you suggest to take this Whom do you suggest to take 
responsibility? this responsibility? 

The verb to be takes the same case after it as before. 
Therefore if it is preceded by an objective case, it must be 
followed by the objective case. 

Wrong Right 

Who do you consider it to be? Whom do you consider it to 

be? (Transposed, the sen- 
tence reads, You do consider 
it to be whom?) 

Possessive 

No possessive form of any relative, interrogative or pos- 
sessive pronoun takes an apostrophe. This usage is not to 
be confused with the contraction of the pronoun with the 
verb. 

It's means it is. 

Its is the possessive case of it. 



36 GRAMMAR 

You're means you are. 

Your is the possessive of you. 

They're means they are. 

Their is the possessive of they. 



■II. Number Errors 

It is easy to make mistakes in the number of pronouns 
referring to the following: 

anybody one 

everybody each 

anyone either, or 

everyone neither, nor 
none 

These are singular in meaning and must be referred to 
by singular pronouns. 

Wrong Right 

Will anybody who agrees with Will anybody who agrees with 
me, raise their hand? me, raise her hand? 

Everyone must contribute their Everyone must contribute his 
share. share. 

Either Mr. Jones or Mr. Selkirk Either Mr. Jones or Mr. Selkirk 
must make it their business to must make it his business to 
get the order. get the order. 

Care must be taken with the verbs that follow these 
pronouns. The verbs also should be singular. 

Wrong Right 

None of you understand this None of you understands this 

principle. principle. 
Neither Mr. Jones nor Mr. Sel- Neither Mr. Jones nor Mr. Sel- 
kirk want to accept the offer. kirk wants to accept the offer. 

A common error is, 

He don't 



GRAMMAR 37 

Don't is a contraction of do not. The third person singu- 
lar, present tense of do is does. Therefore the form is 
He doesn't 

III. Reflexives 

The reflexive pronouns should be used only in conjunction 
with a personal pronoun for emphasis. They should never 
be used without an antecedent. 

Wrong Right 

Mr. Smith and myself are plan- Mr. Smith and I are planning 

ning to leave for Chicago on to leave for Chicago on Mon- 

Monday. day. 

This carries the best wishes of This carries the best wishes of 

the season from Mr. Smith the season from Mr. Smith 

and myself. and me. 

PREPOSITIONS AND CONJUNCTIONS 

Occasionally a preposition is used incorrectly in place of 
a conjunction. The most common substitutions are, 

like for as 

Wrong Right 

He presented the proposition He presented the proposition as 
like I did. I did. 

without for unless 

Wrong Right 

I will not agree to it without you I will not agree to it unless you 
make this concession. make this concession. 

Sometimes a conjunction is used in place of the infinitive 
form. 

try and for try to 
Wrong Right 

I shall try and rectify this mis- I shall try to rectify this mis- 
take, take. 



38 GRAMMAR 

go and for go to 
Wrong Right 

I shall go and find it in the filing I shall go to find it in the filing 
cabinet. cabinet. 



ADVERBS AND ADJECTIVES 

When a word qualifies the meaning of a verb, it must be 
adverbial in form. Most adverbs are formed by adding 
"ly" to adjectives. 

rapid rapidly 

Many adverbs are formed irregularly, 
good well 

In such cases the adjective is often incorrectly used in 
place of the adverb. 

Wro?ig Right 

She types good. She types well. 

Distinction should be made between the adverb well and 

the adjective well, meaning healthy. 

Wrong Right 

She feels good. She feels well. 

This is grammatical but it This means that no one need 
means that she feels righteous. be alarmed about her health. 

One source of confusion is the sense verbs, i.e., those of 
sound, smell, sight, feeling, taste. Descriptive words fol- 
lowing these usually prove, on anal} T sis, to describe the sub- 
ject, a noun or pronoun, instead of the verb. Accordingly 
they should be adjectives instead of adverbs. 

The perfume smells sweet 
The music sounded too loud. 
She looks happy. 
The apple tastes good. 
The orange feels smooth. 



GRAMMAR 39 

Some other common mistakes in the use of adjectives and 
adverbs are: 

real very 

Wrong Right 

He made a real good sale. He made a very good sale. 

Real is an adjective, meaning genuine. The sentence 
requires an adverb of degree. 

very much 

Wrong Right 

I am very obliged. I am very much obliged. 

Very cannot modify a verb. It can only modify an 
adverb or an adjective. In the second sentence it modifies 
much. 

these kind this kind 

Wrong Right 

We do not like these (those) We do not like this (that) 

kind (sort) of goods. kind (sort) of goods. 

Kind and sort are singular and therefore require the 
singular forms, this and that. 

To follow kind and sort with the expression of a is in- 
correct. 

Wrong Right 

He is the kind of a man I like. He is the kind of man I like. 

so that 

Wrong Right 

I like a margin that wide. I like a margin so wide. 

I like a margin of that width. 

That is an adjective and cannot modify another adjective. 
It must modify a noun as width or be replaced by the adverb 
of degree so. 



PUNCTUATION 

The tendency of modern business practice is to simplify 
punctuation. 
The following rules are for daily use. 

The Period 

A period indicates 

1. The end of a sentence. 

2. An abbreviation. 

Capitals 
General Rules 
Capitalize 

1. The first word of a sentence 

2. The first word of a direct quotation 

3. The first word of items in listings or outlines 

4. The first word of a line of poetry 

5. The principal words of a title 

6. Titles before proper names 

7. Proper nouns or adjectives or words derived from them 

8. The principal words in names of clubs, firms, or other 
organizations 

9. The names of the days of the week and the months of 
the year 

10. Exclamations like "Oh!", "Ha!" 

A few cases sometimes puzzle the stenographer. 

1. Names of common branches of study are not capitalized, 
unless they are Proper Nouns. 

algebra English 

history French 

40 



PUNCTUATION 41 

2. Words like street, square, river, etc., are capitalized 
when they are a part of a proper name, but not when used 
alone. 

The streets are all numbered. 
West 14 Street is nearest. 

3. The names of the seasons are not capitalized unless 
they are used figuratively. 

The laggard, Spring, came limping in. 

4. North, south, east, west, are capitalized when they 
denote a section of the country or are part of an address, 
not when they indicate direction. 

The sun rises in the east. 

The West sent in a big majority for Roosevelt. 

She lives on Central Park West. 

5. Names indicating family relationship are capitalized 
when used alone, to refer to particular persons, or when 
used with a proper noun. 

You have met Mother, haven't you? 
We saw her aunt downtown. 
Her Aunt Mary came yesterday. 

6. Van in Dutch names is capitalized. Von in German 
names is not capitalized. Le, la, de, du, in French names 
are capitalized when no title or Christian name precedes 
them; otherwise, not. 

Van Dam, von Weber, La Salle, Pierre le Fabre. 

7. Sums of money may or may not be capitalized. 

We are enclosing a check for five dollars. 
We are enclosing a check for Five Dollars. 

8. In double exclamations the second is not capitalized. 

"Ha, ha," said the duck, laughing. 



42 PUNCTUATION 

The Comma 

I. Commas are used to indicate omissions. 

Part of your goods will leave December 10; the rest, on January 1. 

II. Commas are always used to separate 

1. Words in a series 

Please give us a report on the present market value of United 
States Steel, United States Rubber, Adams Express, and Railway 
Steel Springs. 

Note: The comma before and is optional. 
The tendency is to omit it. 

2. Yes and no from the rest of the sentence 
Yes, we shall be glad to meet your representative. 

3. Direct quotations from the rest of the sentence 

Mr. Barrett replied, " You will be interested in our proposition" 
(See colon rules also) 

4. Words in direct address from the rest of the sentence 
Miss Brown, will you please take this dictation? 

5. Words and phrases in apposition from the rest of the 
sentence 

Our representative, Mr. Baldwin, will call on you. 

6. Non-restrictive relative clauses from the rest of the 
sentence 

Our representative, whom you may recall having met in New York 
last year, will take up the matter of Amalgamated Rubber with 
the proper people. 

Note: A non-restrictive relative clause is one that may be 
omitted without changing the meaning of the sentence. (Example 
above.) A restrictive relative clause cannot be omitted without 
changing the meaning of the sentence. Example: A water supply 
which is contaminated at its source is a menace to the community. 



PUNCTUATION 43 

7. Two adjacent sets of figures 

In 1922, 161 copies of Queen Victoria were sent to you. 

8. Volume, page, or line numbers following the names of 
books, magazines, plays, or poems 

Vanity Fair XL, 237. 

III. When the ideas are not closely connected, commas 
are used to separate 

1. Introductory adverbial clauses when they are involved, 
or the meaning is obscure 

When any complicated mechanism, such as The Hoover Machine, 
gets out of order, the best thing to do is to call in an expert. 

2. Participial phrases from the rest of the sentence, 
especially when they are placed at the beginning 

Having investigated your claim, we are ready to suggest an adjust- 
ment. 

3. " Thrown-in" expressions horn the rest of the sentence 
You understand, of course, that this is only a temporary offer. 

4. Introductory expressions from the rest of the sentence 
On the other hand, we cannot agree to help him. 

5. A long, involved subject, from the verb 

That he is a more desirable man for the place than any other ap- 
plicant, is the idea of the entire board. 

6. The parts of a compound sentence, when they are not 
closely connected in thought, or the meaning is not clear 

He accepted the position, and the salary was raised to meet 
his requirements. 

The Semicolon 

1. The members of a compound sentence which are com- 
plex in construction or which contain commas are separated 
from each other by a semicolon. 



44 PUNCTUATION 

We regret exceedingly to be forced to take this stand; but, 
under the circumstances, we have no alternative. 

2. The clauses of a compound sentence are separated by 
a semicolon when the connective is omitted. 

Part of your goods will be sent to your New York office on 
December 10; the rest will be forwarded to the Newark branch, 
January 1. 

3. The members of a series of words, phrases, or clauses 
which are complex in construction or contain commas are 
separated from each other by semicolons. 

We sent our representative to get information on the following 
points: the date when the property was insured; the date and 
exact time of the fire; the probable cause of the fire; the amount 
of stock on hand; the amount of stock damaged by fire, by water, 
and by mishandling. 

The Colon 

1. The colon is used after the salutation in a business 
letter. 

Gentlemen: 

2. The colon precedes lists, and usually follows words 
or phrases like as follows, the following. 

We are sending under separate cover the following: 

3. The colon is used before long or formal quotations. 
The text of President Harding's speech is: 

4. The colon is used before quotations of poetry. 

There is hardly a school girl who cannot recite these lines: 

Aye, tear her tattered ensign down 
Long has it waved on high 
And many an eye has danced to see 
That banner in the sky. 



PUNCTUATION 45 

Question Marks 

1. The question mark is used at the end of a direct 
question. 

2. Often in business the form of a question is used to 
present an idea courteously or emphatically with no expec- 
tation of an answer. In such a rhetorical question no 
question mark is needed. 

May we expect to hear from you favorably. 

The Hyphen 

One of the stenographer's most common errors is placing 
a hyphen in word combinations which should be units or 
separate words. The best guide here is the latest edition of 
one of the standard dictionaries. A few general rules may 
help, although they should not be considered arbitrary. 

1. Short words which have been combined for a long time 
and which are stressed unequally, are not usually hyphenated, 
windmill storekeeper homelike raindrop bookkeeping 
schoolroom childhood farewell tomorrow boathouse 

2. Words that are stressed equally, and pronounced sepa- 
rately, are usually hyphenated. 

cat-tails by-laws son-in-law half-moon 

fellow-servant self-evident first-rate book-dealer 

Combinations of half and quarter with other words are 

hyphenated when the use or derivation is literal. They are 

written as separate words when the meaning is figurative. 

half-moon half brother 

quarter-deck quarter back 

3. In the use of the prefixes co, pre, and re, the vowel 
following is often the same as the final prefix vowel. In 
this case, a hyphen or a diaeresis, is often used. 

pre-eminent or preeminent 
co-operation or cooperation 



46 PUNCTUATION 

4. Points of the compass are not hyphenated unless three 
directions are indicated 

southeast 
south-southeast 

The Apostrophe 

The ordinary stenographer's stumbling block, the apos- 
trophe, is used 

1. To indicate possession in nouns: 
Singular number adds 's 

The girl's transcription was good. 

Plural number adds 's when the plural does not end in s. 
Men's clothes are on sale. 

Plural adds ' only, when the plural does end in s. 
Boys' clothes are on sale. 

Exceptions: If the singular ends in s, sh, ch, x, or z the 
possessive case may be indicated by the addition of an apos- 
trophe. 

Jones' store is better than Jones's store. 

The sign of possession in compound nouns should be 
placed at the end. 

Singular brother-in-law's 
Plural brothers-in-law's 

The sign of possession should be placed after the last 
word of a series. 

The Alexander Smith & Company's report. 

2. To form the plural of letters, figures, words and signs 

Your t's are not crossed. 

Your S's are not well-formed. 

There are too many and's in your work. 



PUNCTUATION 47 

3. To denote omissions of letters from words. In this 
case place the apostrophe zuhere the omission occurs. 
he'll 
you're not your'e 

Quotation Marks 

Direct Quotations 

Use double quotation marks 

To enclose a direct quotation, i.e., the exact words of a 
speaker. 

"Our plan is to pay $2500 down, and the rest in quarterly in- 
stallments of $500 each," replied the Treasurer. 

The direct words of each new speaker always begin a new 
paragraph. 

If the quotation is broken be careful to enclose both 
parts in quotation marks. 

"Our plan," said the Treasurer, "is to pay $2,500 down, and the 
rest in quarterly installments of $500 each." 

If the quotation is broken, the first word only should 
commence with a capital. 

Wrong Right 

"You believe," said Mr. Smith, "You believe," said Mr. Smith, 

"That we should give them a "that we should give them a 

discount." discount." 

Here the original sentence is continued after the break; 
therefore the continuation commences with a small letter. 

Wrong Right 
"He is right," said Mr. Mar- "He is right," said Mr. Mar- 
shall, "you should not have shall. "You should not have 
done it." done it." 

Here the first sentence of the quotation ends at the break; 
hence you is capitalized. 



48 PUNCTUATION 

If a quotation consists of more than one paragraph, 
place quotation marks at the beginning of each paragraph, 
at the end of only the last one. 

If the quotation is incomplete, indicate this by using a 
small letter. 

Example: The Chamber of Commerce is of great value in smaller 
cities. The President's last report said, "it is of incalculable value 
to a small growing community." 

Here the quotation is only a portion of the President's 
original sentence. The small letter in it indicates this. 
Sometimes such a quotation is preceded by. ..., to in- 
dicate material not quoted. 

Note: Place all punctuation marks belonging to the quotation 
within the quotation marks. This includes the comma of separation. 

Example: "Impossible!" shouted the Manager. "It cannot 
have happened." 

"You will believe me," replied Mr. Southern, "when you in- 
vestigate for yourself." 

"Will you report at eight?" asked Mr. Marshall. 

"We shall commence work then." 

Use single quotation marks 

To enclose a quotation within a quotation 

Our salesman turned to say, "But you do not agree with 
Mr. Marshall, who says, 'the customer is always right.'" 

Note: The single and the double quotation marks at the end, 
indicate the end of both the original quotation and the included 
one. 

Other Uses of Quotation Marks 

1. Quotation marks may be used to denote the title of 
books, magazines, articles, poems and pictures. Many pre- 
fer to underline once all such titles, especially in typing, as 
this method looks neater. In printing, the underlined title 
becomes italicized. 



PUNCTUATION 49 

Bring me Prentice-Hall Business Digest 

or 
Bring me "Prentice-Hall Business Digest." 
Caution: In quoting titles be careful that they are exact. Do 
not carelessly omit articles, or place them outside the quotation 
marks. 

Wrong Right 

We are reading the " House of We are reading "The House of 
the Seven Gables." the Seven Gables." 

2. Use quotation marks when you wish to indicate that 
you are using a word in some other sense than its accepted 
English use, as in the use of slang, or coined words; or when 
you use a word as a term or a means of reference. 

Stenographers should dress so that they do not resemble the 
modern "flapper." 

"Stenographers" in the sentence above is in the nominative 
case. 

The word "effective" has been used too frequently. 

3. Names of ships or trains are often enclosed in quotation 
marks. 

The "Twentieth Century Limited" brings Chicago business 
even closer to New York. 

In these two cases also, underhning may take the place 
of quotation marks. 

Quotation marks are not used 

1. To enclose poetry. 

Invictus expresses modern individualism in these lines: 

I am the master of my fate; 
I am the captain of my soul. 

2. To enclose well known quotations or proverbs. 
You know the old saying, It is never too late to mend. 



NUMBERS 

1. In the body of a letter, numbers should usually be 
written out, when the writing does not become too involved. 

Seventeen dollars $17.37 

Five thousand volumes 4796 volumes 

This rule does not apply, of course, to addresses, dates, 
business expressions like 4%, or listings. 

It is no longer considered necessary in a typed letter to 
write a sum of money in two forms, the words followed by 
the figures in parentheses. 

2. Roman numerals are used in referring to passages 
from the Bible, and in denoting parts or chapters of a book. 

Arabic numerals are used to denote verses in the Bible. 
II Sam. XIX, 34. 

3. Roman numerals are used to designate the acts of a 
play; Arabic numerals, to designate the lines. 

King Lear Act III, Scene II, 11. 54-5. 



50 



ABBREVIATIONS OF TERMS COMMONLY 
USED IN BUSINESS 



@, at 

a/c, account, on account 

acct., account 

ad val., ad valorem 

agt., agent 

a.m., A.M., forenoon 

amt., amount 

ans., answer 

A/S, Account Sales 

av., average 

bal., balance 

bbl., barrel 

bdl., bundle 

B/E, Bill of Exchange 



bkts., . 

J^ 1 -} MA of Lading 

bldg., building 

bis., bales 

b.o., buyer's option 

bt., bot., bought 

bu., bushel 

bx., box 

C, one hundred 

c, £., cents 

cf., compare 

c.a.f., cost and freight 

chgd., charged 

cif 1 
Vj" f cost, freight and ins. 

ck., check 
c/o, care of 



C.O.D., Cash On Delivery 

cr., credit, creditor 

cwt., hundredweight 

C.W.O., Cash With Order 

D.B., Daybook 

dept., department 

dft., draft » 

dis., disct., discount 

do., the same, ditto 

doz., dozen 

dr., debtor 

ea., each \ 

e.e., errors excepted 

e.g., for example 

et al., and others 

etc., and so forth 

ex., example 

exch., ex., exchange 

exp., express, expense 

fgt., frt., freight 

r ' / ' > free on board 
f.o.b. J 

F.O.R., Free On Rails 

for'd., forward 

ft., foot, feet 

gal., gallon 

G.F.A., General Freight Agent 

G.P.A., General Passenger 

Agent 

gr. wt., gross weight 

grs., grains \ 

guar., guarantee 

hhd., hogshead 



51 



52 



COMMON ABBREVIATIONS OF TERMS 



h.p., horse-power 

hrs., hours 

ib„ ibid, in the same place 

id., the same 

i.e., that is 

in., inches, inch 

inc., incorporated 

ins., insurance 

int., interest 

inv., invoice 

inv't., inventory 

I.O.U., I Owe You 

jour., journal 

kg., keg 

lb., pound 

L/C., Letter of Credit 

Ltd., limited 

M., noon 

m., Min., minute 

max., maximum 

mdse., merchandise 

memo., memorandum 

mfd., manufactured 

mfg., manufacturing 

mfr., manufacturer 

mgr., manager 

mo., month 

mos., months 

ms., manuscript 

mss., manuscripts 

N.B., take notice 

no., nos., number, numbers 

N.S.F., not sufficient funds 

O.K., right 

oz., ounce 

p., pp., page, pages 

payt., payment 

p.c, %, percent 



pc, piece 

per an., by the year 

pk., peck 

pkg., package 

P.M., afternoon 

P.O., Postoffice 

pr., pair 

Pres., President 

pro tern., for the time 

P.S., Postscript 

qt., quart 

rec'd., received 

rec't., receipt 

rd., road 

ref., reference 

ret'd., returned 

R. F. D., Rural Free Delivery 

R.R., Railroad 

Ry., Railway 

S/D, Sight Draft 

sec, secretary 

ser., series 

sq., square 

S.S., Steamship 

Str., Steamer 

s.up't., superintendent 

T., ton 

ton., tonn., tonnage 

treas., treasurer 

via, by way of 

viz., namely 

vol., volume 

vs., against 

W/B, Way-bill 

wk., week 

wt., weight 

yd., yard 

yr., year 



COMMON ABBREVIATIONS OF TERMS 



53 



STATES, TERRITORIES, AND POSSESSIONS 



Alabama, Ala. 
Arizona, Ariz. 
Arkansas, Ark. 
California, Cal., Calif. 
Colorado, Colo. 
Connecticut, Conn. 
Delaware, Del. 
District of Columbia, D. C. 
Florida, Fla. 
Georgia, Ga. 
Illinois, 111. 
Indiana, Ind. 
Kansas, Kans. 
Kentucky, Ky. 
Louisiana, La. 
Maryland, Md. 
Massachusetts, Mass. 
Michigan, Mich. 
Minnesota, Minn. 
Mississippi, Miss. 
Missouri, Mo. 
Montana, Mont. 
Nebraska, Nebr. 

The following should not be abbreviated: Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa, 
Samoa, Guam, Idaho, Maine, Oregon, Utah. 



Nevada, Nev. 
New Hampshire, N. H. 
New Jersey, N. J. 
New Mexico, N. Mex. 
New York, N. Y. 
North Carolina, N. C. 
North Dakota, N. Dak. 
Oklahoma, Okla. 
Pennsylvania, Pa. 
Philippine Islands, P. I. 
Porto Rico, P. R. 
Rhode Island, R. I. 
South Carolina, S. C. 
South Dakota, S. Dak. 
Tennessee, Tenn. 
Texas, Tex. 
Vermont, Vt. 
Virginia, Va. 
Washington, Wash. 
West Virginia, W. Va. 
Wisconsin, Wis. 
Wyoming, Wyo. 



SPELLING 

As a result of an extensive survey which preceded this 
book, the authors found that the majority of office managers 
took a very sensible view toward their stenographed pro- 
ficiency in spelling. One prominent executive embodied this 
attitude when he said, "We do not expect our stenographers 
to be perfect spellers. We do expect them to consult the 
dictionary. " 



54 



SYLLABICATION 

1. Words should be divided according to their formation. 

know-ledge 

2. Words are usually divided at the prefix and the suffix. 

(prefix) ab-normal 
(suffix) success-ful 

3. No syllables should be separated that are not separated 
in sound. 

Wrong Right 

play-ed need-ed 

4. In double consonants the division is usually made be- 
tween the consonants. 

pos-tulate 

5. Words are usually divided " after the vowel.' ' 

Wrong Right 

respons-ibility responsibility 

sal-utary salu-tary 

6. Words ending in Hon or sion should be divided before 
this syllable. These endings are syllables pronounced shun. 

Wrong Right 

obligat-ion obliga-tion 

reprehens-ion reprehen-sion 



55 



THE LETTER OF INQUIRY 

The content of this letter is so simple, and the field so 
broad, that few definite suggestions will be made. Courtesy 
and clearness should characterize it. In most letters of this 
type, the following points should be made : 

I. Inquiry or request stated clearly, courteously and briefly 
II. Purpose of inquiry 
III. Appreciation of the anticipated service 



56 



LETTER OF INQUIRY 



"t-ll-y-J./ J^UU^r^ /CWk^4,^' 






57 



ANSWER TO INQUIRY OR REQUEST 

This letter varies with the type of inquiry. The follow- 
ing points however are usually made: 

I. Acknowledgment of the letter of inquiry 

II. The granting of the request, or the refusal of the request. 
If the favor cannot be extended, it is polite to give the 
reason. 

III. A courteous conclusion 

This often includes a sales talk. 



58 



ANSWER TO INQUIRY OR REQUEST 

Ntfmllotk (Salient 

(&nm& ^Rciptirff jfux minx* HfSWfVBXfl 



417-421 NADISON AVENDE 
NEW YORK CITY 



March 13, 1922 



TIr&. Luther Davison 
420 Highland Avenue 
Portland, Oregon 

Dear Madam: 

Acknowledgment As you requested in your letter of March 11, 

of the request. we are sending you under separate cover some 

Granting of very interesting prints showing various in- 

the request teriors of American homes. 

Since it is our policy to ascertain and to 
meet individual requirements, we issue no 
catalogs. Instead, our Service Department is 
entirely at your disposal without obligation. 
If you cannot arrange to visit the Galleries 
Sales talk on one of your Eastern trips, this depart- 

ment is ready to make suggestions by sketch 
or by photographs, covering your problem, 
whether it be a single piece of furniture or 
an entire interior. 

We hope that you will give us an opportunity 
to co-operate with you. 

lours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 



flMS;ED 




59 



ORDER LETTERS 

The two essentials of this letter are: 

I. Completeness of Information 

1. Description of articles 

Detailed description when goods are not ordered from 
a list or catalog. Reference to number when goods 
are ordered from a catalog or list. As houses issue 
new catalogs at frequent intervals, it is necessary to 
make this reference exact by giving the date or num- 
ber of publication. 

2. Method of shipping 



3. Method of payment 

4. Shipping date 

5. Number of order 

6. Destination 



When necessary 



II. Effective Arrangement. 

The point to be featured in this letter is the order. There- 
fore, it should be placed as a unit in the center of the page, 
indented and listed. 

When the goods are not ordered from a catalog or list, 
the following is a good form: 

" please send me the following articles: 

4 yds. navy blue satin Ribbon, 

4 inches wide @ $1.50 $6.00 

1 yd. Chantilly Lace, 

Sample enclosed @ 16.50 16.50" 

When goods are ordered from a catalog or list, the fol- 
lowing form is used: 

" please send me the following articles: 

8 dozen Women's Waists, No. X-703, 

sizes 32-40, black, @ $9.00 $72.00" 

60 



ORDER LETTERS 



¥2 



JVLa^^sL 30, /JJLJl. 

*n-*ji, ^ta^U^r^ A+^^. / 

i , / x(aX1 m^L^x^t^ jJ^JL /£~ j-i 5: crv 

J&*iJL£u IjuvljsL "t^LesQJL- -Try. -^<3i^C j^JZ^kt" L* 




61 



ORDER LETTERS 







jUyL+x~-U^L QsCbUJL^o ~% ~VUjl. ash-**. cuJ-oUxjla* : 

y UASOlU. >L£Lv-y. '£&**-*- &&~^ "AL/A-^ y 

$Q^ML~ SU^JLv-JL tO.&O / 0-0-0 



^W t 



vu^j^u £~— 



62 



ORDER LETTERS 

NOTES 

1. Indent all lists to give space for the item to be checked and 
rechecked in the Order Department and the Shipping Department. 

2. Give prominence to the names of the articles ordered by 
capitalizing or underlining, or by using both devices. 

3. Give individual and total prices when the order is accom- 
panied by money in some form, or is to be sent C.O.D. Even when 
the terms are understood the repetition of the price obviates 
dispute. 

4. Do not use " Enclosed please find." It is unnecessary to 
ask anyone to "please find" money enclosed. The form "I am 
enclosing" or " Enclosed you will find" is an accepted opening. 

5. Make the tone of the letter courteous by using such expres- 
sions as "kindly send" or "please send." In this case you are 
asking for service. In the case above there is neither service nor 
favor in finding the check. 

6. Make the tone of the letter courteous by using complete 
statements. Do not employ forms like "Enclosed find check" 
instead of "Enclosed you will find a check." 

7. Designate the number of enclosures by writing "enclosures" 
with the number of enclosures after the word, or "enclosure" at 
the left margin under the stenographer's initials. 



63 



ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF ORDER 

The new customer's first impression of a business house 
is formed by the manner in which his initial order is handled. 
An order, large or small, should be acknowledged briefly, 
promptly and in a tone of welcome. 

I. The simplest type of acknowledgment should 
include : 

Acknowledgment of order 

1. Appreciation of order 

2. Date of order 

3. Reference to method of payment 

4. Number of order 

5. Some form of re-statement 

Shipping Information 
A Short Sales Talk 

1. In the case of a new customer this should sound a note 
of welcome and hope of future service. 

2. In the case of an old customer it should show appre- 
ciation of the relationship and desire for further service. 

II. Another type is one that explains delayed or incom- 
plete shipment. This letter contains the points under I, 
with an explanation of the special condition, plans for an 
adjustment, and an expression of regret. 

III. A printed postcard with blanks for specific infor- 
mation as to dates and amounts is often used in reply to 
routine orders. It is not good business to use a post card 
to acknowledge an initial order; it is not complimentary 
to use this form to acknowledge a large order or one which 
represents a relationship of long standing. 
64 



ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF ORDER 



Netn]Jorfi(!§albwii 



4J7— 121 MADISON AVENUE 



April. 5, 1922 



Acknowledg- 
ment of order 
Date Method 
of payment 

Re-statement 
of order 



Number 



Mrs. Luther Davison 
420 Highland Avenue 
Portland, Oregon 

Dear Madam: 

We thank you for your letter of March 30, 
ordering the following pieces of furniture, 
to be charged to your account: 

1 #61/7854 Dining Room Group, ten pieces $785.00 
1 # 1/2627 Mahogany High Eoy 275.00 

1 #32/612 Walnut Chaise Longue 175.00 



Shipping 



$1235.00 
This has been listed as order number 
16754, to which you will please refer if you 
have occasion to write. 

As you requested, these goods will be sent to 
Dune View, Southampton, Long Island, by fast 
information freight, to reach you by May 1. 

You will no doubt be pleased with these pieces. 
Sales talk If you should for any" reason be dissatisfied, we 

shall make every effort to adjust the difficulty. 

Very truly yours, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 



Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 



Sales Division 



MSM:ED 



65 



NOTICE OF SHIPMENT 

The notice of shipment includes the following information: 

I. Shipping Notice 
Date 
Method 
express 
freight 
truck, etc. 
Route 
II. Condition of goods 

Many houses use a printed postcard with blank spaces for 
dates, method of shipment, and route. 



66 



NOTICE OF SHIPMENT 



Neroloirk (Sailing 

(Snmi J&qrifrs Jurmbxr* CjmxtpaMg 



-417-421 HADISON AVENUE 
NEW YORK CTTY 



April 20, 1922 



Date 

Order number 
Method of ship- 
ment 
Route 

Condition 
of goods 



Mrs. Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Madam: 

In accordance with your request we are 
shipping today, your order listed as 
number 16754, by fast freight, via the 
Long Island Railroad, as per enclosed 
Bill of Lading. 

These goods were carefully packed and 
should, arrive in good condition. 

Yours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 



18SM:ED 
TBnciosure 



67 



LETTER OF CLAIM 

This letter is simple in form. The purchaser knows that 
a business house usually follows the slogan, " The customer is 
always right." Therefore, his only obligation is to present 
his case promptly, clearly, and pleasantly. 

This letter should include: 

I. Reference to transaction (date, nature) 

II. The difficulty 

III. Request for adjustment 

IV. Courteous conclusion 

Claims are frequently made about unsatisfactory service. 

I. Business 

Janitorial 
Heat 
Light 
Elevator 
Repairs, etc. 

Personal 

Rudeness of employees 

Lack of proper attention, etc. 

Sales 
Orders incomplete or wrong 

Quality of goods 

Damaged goods 
Defective goods 
Misrepresented goods 

68 



LETTER OF CLAIM 69 



Billing 

Overcharge 
Undercharge 

Delivery- 
Delayed 
Incomplete 



II. Public 



Express 

Railroads 

Telephone 

Electricity 

Gas 

City Departments 

etc. 



LETTER OF CLAIM 






ix / 'c/J. W cJt^^C CJLeLsC^jL^ 'fayy***- * 7 S~- 



(TV 
/ 2 3 y <rv 






70 



LETTER OF CLAIM 

Cir~£L*c£' oOo -v^r-*-<- tv-^X v-»-v-t-a_ £3" 

tAr*~fzAZL <l^^L^U^^~ ~tLct ysr^ «s-L£4L 






71 



LETTER OF ADJUSTMENT 

The tone of this letter should be conciliatory and assuring. 
The customer must not be lost; the firm must not suffer. 

The letter should contain: 

I. Definite reference to the claim with the] date and nature of 

the transaction 
II. Results of an investigation of the trouble 

III. The adjustment suggested 

IV. Courteous statement of regret and a sales talk for the future 

The nature of the situation will determine the order 
and relative importance of these points. The beginning of 
of this letter is most important, as the man who is to receive 
it is in an unfavorable frame of mind. The effective letter 
is one that puts him in a good humor immediately. Em- 
phasize adjustment rather than difficulty; his point of view 
rather than yours. "It is a pleasure to help you avoid the 
difficulty with the multigraph," is better than, "We are 
sure we can help you avoid the difficulty. " 



72 



LETTER OF ADJUSTMENT 

mcukPOKAi£D 



417-4:21 MADISON AVENUE 



NEW -SfORK CITY 

TUEPHOKE VANPSWILT JJP9I 



April 30, 1922 



Mrs. Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Madam: 

We regret to learn from your letter of Acril 28 r 
Reference that the pieces of furniture shipped under order 
to claim number 16754, reached you with one chair broken 

and the high boy scratched. 

Results of Since our records show that all of the pieces 
investiga- left the factory in perfect condition, we have 
Hon taken the matter up with the railroad. 

The ad- Will you be good enough to keep the high boy and 
justment chair in your possession until the adjustor for 
suggested the railroad calls to verify our claim of damage? 

In the meantime we are sending you today by ex J 
press, duplicate pieces in perfect condition, 
which should reach you in a few days. 

Courteous Although we feel that the accident was not due to 
expression any carelessness on our part, we regret exceed- 
of regret ing]y that you have been inconvenienced. 

Yours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 

Service Department 
MSM:ED 



73 



LETTER OF ADJUSTMENT 

The head of a large business organization gives the fol- 
lowing suggestions: 

I. Never lose your temper, nor allow your tone to carry with 

it an air of accusation. 
II. Never be sarcastic. 

III. Always give your reader information pleasantly. Never 

instruct him. 

IV. Never embarrass your reader by asking him to admit he is 

wrong. Unless a customer offers to admit his mistake, 
don't make an effort to get an admission. 
V. Avoid attempted humor, flattery, and untruthfulness. Be 

sincere. 
VI. Avoid using any words that might reflect on the customer's 

veracity. 
VII. Avoid negative suggestions. 
VIII. Avoid hazy explanations of the error. 
IX. Avoid hasty or incomplete adjustment which afterwards 
leads to: 

1. Denial of a just claim 

2. Further complications 

3. Settlement with dishonest claimants 



74 



COLLECTION LETTER 

The tone of this letter is very important. As in the 
letter of adjustment, the aim is to settle the difficulty with- 
out loss to the firm, and to keep the customer, so in this letter 
the aim is to collect the money and to keep the customer. 

Since most customers are honest, their accounts are an 
asset. Therefore, letters are planned to appeal to the honest 
man who is in trouble or is slow, easy-going and careless. 

Usually a series is planned, the first two of which are type 
letters, the third and fourth of which vary to meet the special 
condition that exists. The series should be progressively 
urgent, and should usually contain the following points: 

Letter 1. 

Statement of balance 

Date of purchase 

Friendly request for payment 

Letter 2. 

Reference to first collection letter 
Reference to amount and date of purchase 
Request for explanation 

Letter 3. 

Reference to preceding letter 

Reference to amount and date of purchase 

The firm's suggestion as to the customer's action 

This suggestion depends upon the nature of the contract, the 
policy of the firm, the standing of the customer. The following 
methods are applicable to certain situations: 



76 COLLECTION LETTER 

Suggestion of partial payment 
Refusal to increase the account 

Urgent request with an appeal to pride, the reputation of 
customer, past business relations, etc. 

Letter 4- 

Reference to preceding letters 

Reference to the amount and date of purchase 

Threat 
Collection Agency- 
Draft 

Intended legal action 
Notice of legal action 



COLLECTION LETTER 

Nemlorft^alfewg 

<&ranfc ?lajriir* Jfarnitare GJtfnqimtrf 

4.17-421 MADISON AVENUE 



June 1, 1922 



Mrs. Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Madam: 

Reference to ^y we C &H your attention to the 

balance enclosed statement of your account 

now due, for which itemized bills 
were sent at the time of delivery, 
Reference to May 1. This matter has evident- 

date of purchase iy escaped your attention. 

Friendly request We shall appreciate a prompt remit- 
tor payment t an c e . 

Yours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 

Credit 'Department 

MSM:ED 
Enclosure 



77 



COLLECTION LETTER 






4J7-421 MADISON AVENUE. 
NEW YORK CTTY 



Jnly I, %9%Z 



Reference to 
amount and 
date of pur- 
chase 

Request for 
payment or 
explanation 



Mrs. Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Madam: 

We are obliged to remind you again 
of your overdue account of $1235.00, 
for purchases delivered May first; 
and to request an immediate settle- 
ment, or an explanation of any circum- 
stances which have prevented you from 
meeting the obligation. 

Yours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Bapid.s Furniture Company 
Incorporated 



* Credit Departifen 



HSM:£D 



78 



COLLECTION LETTER 






417-421 MADISON AVENUE 
NEW YORK CITY 



August 1, 1922 



Mrs. Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Madam: 

We cannot understand why we have not 
„ - . received a check for your account of 
tieferenceto $ 12 35.00, now several months overdue, 
amoum or ^ explanation why it has not been 

paid. 

In accordance with our credit arrange- 
Suggestion ments, we shall be obliged to place 

this account for collection unless we 
hear from you by return mail* 

Yours very truly, 



NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 

Credit*' Department 



MSM:£fi 



79 



COLLECTION LETTER 






4J7-4.21 MADISON AVEXTX 



NEW YORK CITY 



August 15, 1923- 



Mrs* Luther Davison 

Dune View 

Southampton, Long Island 

Dear Mad am ; 

Reference to ^ nis is to inform you that if you do not 

amount and send a remittance covering your May ac- 

date of pur- count of $1235.00 within ten days from 

chase date, or make satisfactory arrangements 

for its settlement, we shall be compelled 

lfireatof ^o pi ace the matter in the hands of our 

legal action attorney without further notice. 

Yours very truly, 

NEW YORK GALLERIES 
Grand Rapids Furniture Company 
Incorporated 

Credit department 



MSM.ED 



80 



THE APPLICATION LETTER 

The First Position. Since this letter is of such a highly 
individual nature, it seems best to make no attempt in High 
School to cover any situation except that with which the 
pupil is confronted when he leaves school. 

The letter in which the graduate applies for his first 
position should be simple, , short and definite. Its form is 
most important. The following points should be considered: 

A. Form 

1. Stationery 

This should be white, preferably English Bond, of Com- 
mercial size (8| x 11), with envelope to match. 

2. Typing 

This should be clear-cut with no erasures, no errors, no 
change in ribbon. The signature should be in ink. 

3. Arrangement 

The letter should be limited to one page, if possible. 
It should present an attractive appearance, well 
margined and well spaced. Whenever possible, in- 
formation should be arranged in lists. This applies 
especially to records of schools, and names and ad- 
dresses of references. 

B. Content 

1. Information 

(a) Source of information concerning the vacancy 

(b) Age 

81 



82 THE APPLICATION LETTER 

1 general education 

(c) Preparation > special education 

J experience 

(d) References 

(e) Complete address, including telephone number 
(/) Request for interview, stating available time 

2. Expression 

The letter should be brief, clear and complete. 

Its tone should be neither over-confident, nor servile. 
This is one of the few types of letter where Respect- 
fully yours is the preferred complimentary close. 



APPLICATION LETTER 

Dear Sir: 

Will you please consider me an applicant for the 
position of stenographer in your office, advertised in 
this morning's "Tribune.'' The following are my 
qualifications: 

Age 17 

Education 

P.S. 47 1910-1918 

Washington Irving High School 

Commercial Course 1918-1921 

Experience 

Office Practice 1 year Washington 

Irving High School 

Stenographer 

James Putnam Company - June - 
September 1921 

References 

Miss Ethel Gittoe 
Bureau of Employment 
Washington Irving High School 
40 Irving Place, New York, N.Y. 

Mr . James Putnam 
120 Broadway 
New York, N.Y. 

Miss Louise Allyn 
40 Irving Place 
New York, N.Y. 

I shall be very glad to go to your office for an 
interview, at any time you may set. You can reach me 
by telephone at Spring 4320. 

I hope that my application will be favorably 
considered and that I shall be given an opportunity to 
work for you or (name of organization). 

Yours respectfully, 



83 



SALES LETTERS 

To make a sale is the one purpose of a sales letter. It 
is not enough that it stimulate curiosity, awaken interest, 
flatter or please the reader. It stands or falls by one stand- 
ard, Did it produce an order? 

It is rare indeed, that a young stenographer is asked to 
construct this most carefully studied, delicately propor- 
tioned piece of correspondence. If, however, she has to 
type many sales letters, she can learn a great deal from them, 
if she knows the basic principles by which they are 
constructed. 

Often in an advertising campaign, a series of letters is 
used. In this brief discussion, the complete letter only will 
be analyzed. The man writing this type of letter has four 
problems : 

1. How can he save the letter from the wastebasket? 

2. How can he convince the reader that the article is superior? 

3. How can he persuade the reader that he wants this product? 

4. How can he get the reader's name on the "dotted line"? 

I. How can he save the letter from the wastebasket? One 
seldom refuses admission to a well-groomed man with a 
cordial manner. He is given a chance to state his business. 
So too, no one refuses to glance at a letter which is written 
on good stationery, which is well typed and effectively 
arranged. This glance carries directly to the first sentences. 
These decide whether the reader continues. Originality of 
form and expression and sincerity of tone are most effective. 
Sometimes the introductory sentences are arresting in their 
84 



SALES LETTERS 85 

brevity and startling in their daring; but these qualities 
are useless if the reader feels a lack of sincerity. 

II. How can he convince the reader that the article is 
superior? He has secured his audience by his effective 
introduction. Now he must convince the reader of the 
worth of the article or service. Whether he uses a scientific 
explanation, statistics, illustration, general argument, testi- 
monials, depends both on the product and the prospective 
customer. A new dental preparation would be explained 
to the dentist by a set of terms which would leave the 
ordinary reader bewildered. The train of argument em- 
ployed should be clear enough to be understood by the 
lowest in intelligence of the selected group addressed, and 
it should be searching enough to satisfy the most captious. 
A clear understanding of the product, discrimination and 
a logical intelligence make light work of this paragraph or 
group of paragraphs. 

III. How can he persuade the reader that he wants this 
article? It is one thing to convince a man that a product 
is good; it is another matter to make him desire it. In the 
first case the appeal is to the intelligence; in the second, it 
is to the emotions. It is in this second appeal, that the 
writer's knowledge of human nature comes into play. If 
he can remember how much he wanted ice skates when he 
was nine; if he knows how much a young girl wants to look 
attractive at the school dance; if he realizes how much a 
saving of three dollars a month means to Mrs. " Across the 
Street" — if he can see his product through the eyes of 
the buyer, he can write an irresistible appeal. 

The reader is persuaded through any strong emotion. 
An analysis of popular advertising shows that the copy- 
writer and the artist are most successful when they appeal 
to 

1. Appetite 

2. Vanity 



86 SALES LETTERS 

3. Pride 

4. Fear of loss 

5. Acquisitiveness 

6. Love of beauty 

7. Economy 

The writer of a sales letter has a more difficult task than 
the copy-writer, whose appeal is to be strengthened by illus- 
tration. He must arouse an emotion with words, as power- 
ful as that which the words and the drawing produce in 
pictorial advertising. 

IV. How can he get the reader's name on u the dotted 
line"? By getting the reader's name on the dotted line, is 
meant some definite action which may result in purchase. 
"Do it now" is the spirit of this conclusion. Since modern 
life is so demanding, and human nature so procrastinating, 
the writer should make action very easy and attractive for 
the reader. This may be done by 

1. Enclosing an order blank 

2. Enclosing an order blank asking that a salesman call 

3. Enclosing a postcard which is to be returned 

4. Adding a form which can be torn off and mailed, asking 

for catalog, samples or other illustrative material. Often 
this is to be accompanied by a small amount of money. 

5. The installment plan which calls for a small initial payment 

and remittances at regular intervals 

6. A "time limit" offer 



TELEGRAMS 



Telegrams because of their cost must be brief. How- 
ever, their clearness should never be sacrificed to their 
brevity. Since marks of punctuation are omitted unless 
paid for, the message must be constructed in such a way 
that a change in punctuation by the recipient will not alter 
the meaning. 

The writer should ascertain by reference to the hand- 
book of the Telegraph Company whether a term counts 
for one word or more than one word. The handbook will 
also decide whether a regular message, a night letter, or 
a day letter will be the best form. 

Telegrams are typed in duplicate or triplicate. Three 
or four spaces are left between the words so that the opera- 
tor will make no mistake. 



The Directions 
Will you arrange to meet me at 
the Blackstone in Chicago at 
4 o'clock on September 26, 
1922? I want to submit a 
proposition to you that I 
think will interest you. 
(34 words) 



The Telegram 
Meet me Blackstone Chicago 
September 26 at 4 have 
proposition (10 words) 



87 



INCORRECT 



7-r tv. ?t £tuzr., 
/fa*) YrJu £2r, «&c, i£,/fjj. 

e 

0*- $ spjuueL '^m. ^JyL, a~*L <dr£j*~ 



CORRECT 



TL Q^JLjz: SUjlL rvUM* , 

c^Ud^^^. ^JKL^ cO" -fit*. L^l <JL 

$Lo-v~-^-*l -&J2-*^-y_ S^£sL*i__ 

(/JZSn*-%* ^Vfc^-cl* H^-K^t-^> # 




BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The following list presents a few books and magazines 
which will be very helpful to the student or the young 
business woman: 

Business English, George Burton Hotchkiss. Business Training 
Corporation. 

Business English, Hotchkiss and Drew. American Book Com- 
pany. 

Business Letters, C. 0. Althouse. Penn Publishing Company, 
Philadelphia, Pa. 

Business Letter Writing, A. M. Candee. Biddle Publishing 
Company, 19 West 44 Street, New York, N. Y. 

Business Man's English, Spoken and Written, W. E. Bar- 
tholomew. The Macmillan Company. 

Commercial Correspondence, R. F. Butler and H. A. Burd. 
D. Appleton and Company. 

Effective Business Letters, Edward Hall Gardner. The 
Ronald Press Company, New York. 

English in Business, Dudley Miles. The Ronald Press. 

English of Commerce, John Opdycke. Charles Scribner's Sons. 

Language for Men of Affairs, Business Writing, Edited by 
James Melvin Lee. The Ronald Press Company. 

Practical Business English, O. C. Gallagher and L. B. Moulton. 
Houghton, Mifflin Co. 

Automatic Letter Writer, Edited by W. H. Leffingwell. 
A. W. Shaw Company. 

The Master Letter Writer, E. B. Davison. Opportunity Press. 

Vocational English, William R. Bowlin and George L. Marsh. 
Scott, Foresman, and Company. 

Magazines and Other Publications 

Printers' Ink, weekly magazine. The Printers' Ink Publishing 
Company. 

90 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 91 

Prentice-Hall Business Digest, a digest of articles from 
business magazines, house organs, etc. Prentice-Hall, New 
York. 

System, monthly magazine. A. W. Shaw and Company, 
Chicago, 111. 

The Annalist, weekly magazine. The New York Times. 

The Saturday Evening Post, weekly magazine. Curtis Pub- 
lishing Co., Philadelphia, Pa. 

The American Magazine, monthly magazine. The Crowell 
Publishing Co., Springfield, Ohio. 

Trade Magazines. Trades and professions usually have 
representative publications. Stenographers will find 
these very valuable in increasing their business vocabu- 
laries and adding to their knowledge of trade or pro- 
fessional conditions. Examples: Women's Wear, The 
Iron Age, Dry Goods Economist, Advertising and 
Selling. 

House Organs. Large manufacturing establishments and 
business concerns often publish "house organs," i.e., 
magazines representing the various activities of their 
organizations. It is often interesting and valuable to 
be familiar with the house organs of organizations 
similar to the one in which the stenographer is 
employed. 



INDEX 



Abbreviations: business forms, 51, 
52; firm names, 6; letter forms, 
6; months, 6; never sacrifice 
courtesy for, 30; states, 6, 53; 
territories, 53; titles, 7, 8, 9, 10, 
51,52 

Accept, except, 24 

Acknowledge, 29 

Acknowledgment, letter of, 64, 65 

Addresses, 3, 4 

Ad, 29 

Adjectives: above, 30; after sense 
verbs, 38; confusion with ad- 
verbs, 38, 39; different from, 27; 
different than, 27; fewer, 28; 
less, 28; practicable, 25; prac- 
tical, 25; recent date, 30; same, 
30; valued, 30 

Adjustment, letter of, 72, 73, 74 

Adverbs: back (refer back, return 
back), 27; coherence, 22; com- 
mon errors, 38, 39; confusion 
with adjectives, 38, 39; farther, 
24; further, 24; formation of, 38; 
herewith, 30; irregular, 38; re- 
spectfully, 24; respectively, 24; 
together (co-operate), 27 

Advertisement, 29 

Advice, 25 

Advise, 25 

Affect, effect, 24 

Among, between, 26 

And, misuse of, 16, 17, 18 

Answer to inquiry, letter of, 58, 59 

Anybody, 36 



Anyone, 36 

Apostrophe, rules for, 46, 47 
Application, letter of, 81, 82, 83 
Arabic numerals, for verses in the 

Bible, 50; plural of, 47 
Arrangement, letter on paper, 2 
As, like, 37 
Attention of, 14 

Back (refer back, return back), 27 

Balance, for coherence, 21 

Beg, 29 

Being that, 33 

Between, among, 26 

Bibliography, 90, 91 

Billing: overcharge, undercharge, 

69 
Blame to, on, 26 
Block form, 3 
Bring, take, 28 

Broken quotations, rules for, 47 
Buy off, from, 25 
By, with, 26 

Capitals: order lists, 63; quota- 
tions, 48; rules for, 40, 41 

Case, pronouns, 33-36 

Catalogs, 14, 60 

Claim, letter of, 68, 69, 70, 71 

Closed punctuation, 3 

Coherence, means of in para- 
graphs, 21, 22 

Coined words, 49 

Collection letters, 75-80 

Colloquialisms, 28, 29 



93 



94 



INDEX 



Colon, rules for, 44 

Come, go, 27 

Comma: error, 18; rules for, 42, 43 

Compare to, with, 27 

Compliance, 29 

Compound words: plural of, 46; 
possessive case of, 46 

Conclusion: business, 11; cen- 
tered, 2, 11 

Correct forms: ordinary, 11; 
for superiors, 11 ; other forms, 
11; participial, 11; signatures, 
12-14 

Confusion: adjectives with ad- 
verbs, 38, 39; conjunctions with 
prepositions, 37 : homonyms, 
23, 24, 25; prepositions, 25, 
26,27 

Conjunctions: confused with prep- 
ositions, 37; danger of and con- 
nection, 16; kinds of adverbial, 
16, 17, 18 

Connectives: within sentences, 
16, 17, 18; between sentences, 20 

Contents duly noted, 29 

Contrast, for emphasis ; 20 

Co-operate together, 27 

Correct order letter, 88 

Date: errors in writing of, 6, 29; 
on dotted line, 4 
Position of: no letterhead, 3; 

letterhead, 4 
Special forms, 4 
Delivery: delayed or incomplete, 

69 
Diaeresis, use of, 45 
Diction: conversational, 1, 29 
Errors: colloquialisms, 28, 29; 
confusion of prepositions, 25, 
26, 27; homonyms, 23, 24, 
25; inaccurate use of words, 



27, 28; incorrect usage, 23- 
29; repetition, 21, 23; un- 
necessary words, 27 
Formal, 29; friendly, 29; spe- 
cific, 29; stereotyped, 29; 
study of business magazines 
for improvement of, 29, 90, 
91; trade and business, 29 

Different from, than, 26 

Differ from, with, 27 

Direct discourse, 34 

Direct quotations, rules for, 47, 49 

Divided sentence, 18 

Doesn't, 37 

Don't, 37 

Dr., 8 

Duly noted, 29 

Each, 36 

Effect, affect, 24 

Either, 36 

Emphasis: through contrast, 20; 
through diction, 21; through 
position, 20; through repeti- 
tion, 21 

Enclosed, 29, 62, 63 

Enclosures, 14, 62, 63 

Everybody, 36 

Everyone, 36 

Except, accept, 24 

Exclamations, punctuation of, 40, 
41 

Farther, further, 24 
Fewer, less, 28 
Figures, plural of, 25 
Form of letter, 2-15 
From, of, off, 25 
Further, farther, 24 

Gel me, 29 
Go, come, 27 



INDEX 



95 



Go and, go to, 38 
Good, well, 38 

Grammar: adjectives, 38, 39; ad- 
verbs, 38, 39; conjunctions, 37 ; 
38: prepositions, 37, 38 
Pronouns, 35-38; case errorSj 
33-36; number errors, 36, 37 
reflexives, 37 
Verbs, 31-33; participles, 33 
shall, will. 31; should, would, 
32; split infinitive, 32; tenses, 
31 

Headings: block form, open punc- 
tuation, 3; indentation form, 
closed punctuation, 3; station- 
ery with letterhead, 3; sta- 
tionery without letterhead, 4; 
two-line, 6; three-line, 6 

Her, she, 34 

Herewith, 29 

Honorable, 9 

Homonyms, 23, 24, 25 

Hyphen, rules for, 45, 46 

/, me, 34, 35 

In, into, 25 

Incomplete quotations, rules for 
punctuation of, 48 

Incorrect word usage, 23-29 

Incorrect order letter, 89 

Indentation: arrangement, 3; of 
lists, 63 

Infinitives, split, 32 

Initials, stenographer's, 13, 59 

Inquiry, letter of, 56, 57 

In, into, 25 

Introductions: block form, open 
punctuation, 3; examples, 3, 4; 
indentation form, closed punc- 
tuation, 3; position, 3; punc- 
tuation of, 3; special forms, 5 

It's, it is, 35 



Keying, 14 

Kind, this and that, these and 
those, 39 

Lay, lie, 28 

Leave, let, 28 

Less, fewer, 28 

Let, leave, 28 

Letters: acknowledgment of or- 
der, 64, 65; adjustment, 72; 
answer to inquiry, 58, 59; ap- 
plication, 81, 82, 83; claim, 68, 
69, 70, 71; collection, 75, 76, 
77, 78, 79, 80; correct and in- 
correct, 88, 89; forms for, 2-15; 
inquiry, 56, 57; letterheads, 3, 
4; notice of shipment, 66, 67; 
one-page, 2; order, 60, 61, 62, 
63; sales, 84-86; two-page, 2 

Letterheads, 3, 4 

Letters, plural of, 46 

Lie, lay, 28 

Like, as, 37 

Lists: in order letters, 60, 61, 62; 
indentation of, 63 

Look into, 28 

Loose, lose, 24 

Magazines: business, trade, house 

organs, 29, 90, 91 
Margins, 2 
Me, I, 34, 35 

Messrs., 8 

Miss, 7 

Mmes., 7 

Most, almost, very, 29 

Mr., Mrs., 7 

Much, very, 39 

Myself, misuse of, 37 

Neither, nor, number of verb and 
pronoun following, 36 



96 



INDEX 



Nominative, case errors in pro- 
nouns, 33-35 

None, number of verb and pro- 
noun following, 36 

Noted, conh nts duly, 29 

Nouns: advice, 25; capitalization 
of, 40, 41; compound, 45, 46; 
date, recent, 30; effect, 24; favor, 
30; hyphen, use of, 45, 46; 
inst., 30; possessive case of, 46, 
47; practice, 25; syllabication 
of, 55 

Number, errors in pronoun and 
verb, 33-36 

Number: of order, 60, 64; of en- 
closures. 63 

Numbers: of streets and avenues, 
6; rules for writing of, 50; two 
together in address, 7 

Numerals: arabic, 50; roman, 50 

Objective, case errors in pronouns, 

34,35 
Of: use with should, would, 26; 

use with off, 26 
Off, use with of, 25, 26; confusion 

with from and on, 25, 26 
Official letters, 5 
On, blame, 26 
Omission: of words in business 

letters, 30; to denote omissions, 

47 
One, number of verb and pronoun 

following, 36 
Open form of punctuation, 3 
Order, acknowledgment of, 64, 65 
Order, letter of, 60-63 
Our, our representative, 29 

Paper: quality of, 2; size of, 2 
Paragraphing, of quotations, 47, 
48 



Paragraphs: coherence in, 21,22', 
emphasis in, 20; length, 20; 
plan, 19 

Participles: participial conclusion, 
11 ; errors in use of , 33; punctua- 
tion of, 43 

Period, uses of, 40 

Please find, 29, 63 

Position: in sentence for empha- 
sis, 15; in paragraph for em- 
phasis, 20 

Possessive case: pronouns, con- 
fusion with verb contractions, 
35, 36; formation of, 46 

Post cards : for acknowledgments, 
64; for shipping notice, 66 

Practice, practise, 25 

Prepositions: as, like, 37; as per, 
30; at hand, 30; between, among, 
26; by, with, 26; errors in use 
of, 25, 26, 37; from, with dif- 
ferent, differ, 27; in, into, 25; 
of, off, from, 25; of, on, 26; of, 
with should and would, 26; to, 
and, 37; to, on, with blame, 26; 
to, with with compare, 27; un- 
less, without, 37 

Prefix, syllabication after, 55 

President, 10 

Professor, 14 

Pronouns: cases of, 33-36; errors 
in use of, 33-36; possessives, 
35, 36; reflexives, 37; to avoid 
repetition, 23 

Proverbs, punctuation of, 49 

Punctuation: apostrophe, 46, 47 
capitals, 41, 42; colon, 44 
comma, 42, 43; hyphen, 45, 46 
period, 40; of letter forms, 3 
period, 40; question marks, 45 
of quotations, 40, 42, 44, 48 
semicolon, 43, 44 



INDEX 



97 



Question: marks, use of, 45; 
rhetorical, 45 

Quotations: broken, 47; capital- 
ization of, 47; direct, 47, 48, 
49; incomplete, 48; paragraph- 
ing of, 47; punctuation of, 40, 
42, 44, 48; within a quotation, 
48 

Quotation marks: errors in use 
of, 49; use with names of ships, 
trains, 49; use in coined words, 
49; use with slang, 49 

Re, regarding, 14 

Real, very, 39 

Reach me, 29 

Recent date, 29 

Refer back, 27 

Reflexive pronouns, 37 

Repetition: by synonym and pro- 
noun, 21, 22; dangers of, 21, 23 

Respectfully: use of, 11 

Respectfully, respectively, 24 

Restrictive, and non-restrictive 
adjective clauses, punctuation 
of, 42 

Return bach, 27 

Reverend, 9 

Rhetorical question, 45 

Roman numerals, uses of, 50 

Sales, letter of, 84, 85, 86 
Sales talk, 58, 64, 72 
Salutations: business, 10; friendly, 

10; special forms of, 11 
Secretary, 10 
Seeing that, 33 
Semicolon, uses of, 43, 44 
Sentence: "and" sentence, 16, 17, 

18; common errors in, 18, 19; 

connectives in, 16, 17; length, 

15 ; position for emphasis, 15 



Shall, will, 31 

She, her, 34 

Shipment : delayed or incomplete, 
64; notice of, 66, 67 

Should, would, 32 

Should of, 26 

Signatures: character of, 12; 
company responsibility, 12; ex- 
amples, 13, 14; personal re- 
sponsibility, 12; stenographer's 
responsibility, 13; typed, 13; 
with by, pro, per, 12 

Signs, plural of, 46 

Slang, quotation marks with, 49 

So, that, 39 

Sort: this, that, 39; of a, 39 

Spacing, 2 

Spelling, 54 

Split infinitives, 32 

States, abbreviations of, 53 

Stationery, quality, size, 2 

Stereotyped business forms, 29 

Subject, change in, 19 

Submit, 29 

Suffix, syllabication before, 55 

Superintendent, 10 

Syllabication, rules for, 55 

Synonyms: for coherence in para- 
graphs, 22; to avoid word repe- 
tition, 23 

Take, bring, 28 

Telegrams, 87 

Telephone, phone, 29 

Tenses, of verbs, 31, 32 

Than, with different, 26 

Thai, so, 39 

They're, their, 36 

This, these, with kind and sort, 39 

Titles: abbreviation of, 7, 8, 9, 
10, 51, 52; necessity for, 6; of 
honor or position, 8, 9, 10; 



INDEX 



ordinary forms of address, 7, 8; 
of books, magazines, articles, 
poems, pictures, 48, 49 

Underlining: in order lists, 63; 
names of ships and trains, 49; 
slang, coined words, terms of 
reference, 49; titles of books, 
magazines, articles, poems, pic- 
tures, 48, 49 

Unless , without, 37 

Unnecessary words, 27 

Verbs: advise, 25, 30; affect, effect, 
24; beg, 30; blame on, to, 26; 
buy of, off, from, 26; compare to, 
with, 27; confusion of contrac- 
tions with possessive cases, 35, 
36; co-operate together, 27; differ 
from, with, 27; go, come, 27; 
infinitives, 32; leave, let, 28; lie, 
lay, 28; loose, lose, 24; oblige, 
30; omission of, 30; participles, 
33; participial ending, 11; prac- 
tise, 25; refer back, 27; return 
back, 27; sense, adjectives after, 
38; shall, will, 31; should, would, 



32; should of, 26; take, bring, 28; 

tenses, 31 
Very, real, 39 
Very, much, 39 
Voice, change in, 19 

Well, good, 38 

Who, whom, 34 

Wish to, 29 

With: differ with, 26; compare 

with, 26 
With, by, 26 
Without, unless, 37 
Words: colloquialisms, 28, 29; 

confusion of prepositions, 25, 

26, 27; conversational, 1, 29; 
formal, 29; friendly, 29; homo- 
nyms, 23, 24, 25; inaccurate, 

27, 28; incorrect usage, 23-29; 
omission of, 30; repetition, 23; 
specific, 29; stereotyped, 29; 
study of business magazines 
and trade, 29; unnecessary, 27 

Would, should, 32; misuse of, 32; 
would of, 26; would state, 29 

Your, youWe, 36 



